Sacred Friendship
by Sprite716
Summary: Tony gets a visit from an old friend. Meanwhile, someone from Tony's past plots revenge on Tony.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters.

A/N – This is my first fanfic. I hope you enjoy it. Please Read and Review

After a long weekend of working in the field, Tony Dinozzo was looking forward to enjoying an evening at home. He planned on watching some movies, ordering pizza and having a couple of beers. A former marine by the name of Duke Kovaska had been found dead in Rock Creek Park, and Gibbs had taken it upon himself to assign his team to take on the case, even though it meant they had to work over the weekend. The team spent the entire weekend at NCIS, working on finding the man's murderer. Gibbs always took it very personally when a marine was murdered. After many dead ends, the team had finally located a woman by the name of Laura Winfield. Apparently, the marine was having an affair with Laura. Laura asked Duke to get a divorce from his wife, and it appeared as if he was about to do it until he got cold feet at the last minute. Angry that she had spent over a year with this man, trying to work her way into a fortune, (Duke had inherited a large amount of money from his father), and she took matters into her own hand and shot the marine. After Gibbs spent less than thirty minutes in the interrogation room with her, she admitted to killing him.

As Tony reached his apartment, he felt something was off. His investigative instincts kicked in and Tony reached for his gun. He slowly made his way to the door and turned the knob. His door was unlocked. _I'm almost positive I locked the door this morning_ Tony thought to himself.

Cautiously, Tony made his way inside, quietly closing the door after him. Everything was in its place and the apartment was quiet. _Maybe I'm just being paranoid_ Tony thought. Suddenly, Tony caught sight of a light blue duffle bag lying by the couch. A slight chuckle escaped Tony's mouth. Tony heard the door open again and spun around with a huge grin on his face.

Walking through the door was a small woman with blonde hair, holding a couple of bags. Upon seeing Tony, she dropped her bags and ran up to him, giving him a hug. "Tony, it's so great seeing you again," she said.

"You too, Becky. You didn't tell me you were coming to Washington. What are you doing here?" Tony was still slightly shocked to see his best friend standing in front of him.

"I'm sorry Tony. I actually didn't know I was coming here either until last night. My company sent me up here to take care of a couple of business meetings. The person who originally was supposed to come came down with pneumonia at the last minute and I'm a substitute. I did call you today, but you didn't answer your phone. I hope you don't mind that I let myself in. When I came here, it didn't even occur to me that you might be busy or might have someone else here or something like that."

"You know you're always welcome here," Tony said, giving her a grin and a reassuring hug. "Sorry about not answering my phone. We had a case over the weekend. We didn't even have time to sit down and eat today, which reminds me, I was about to order some pizza."

"Not to worry. I already ordered us pizza. Pepperoni, sausage and extra cheese. I also brought a couple of movies for us to watch," Becky said, holding up a couple of DVD cases.

"Great," Tony said enthusiastically, making his way to the fridge.

"Want a beer?" Tony asked.

"Sure."

"You're here on business," Tony said, opening up his beer. "Boring meetings and big execs. talking you to death for hours on end. Sounds fun," Tony added with a smirk. "Does your company not pay for a hotel for you? You'd think they would since they're a multimillion dollar company."

"Oh, they do," Becky said. "But I'd rather stay with you," she added with a smile.

"How's Alaska treating you?" Tony asked.

"It's okay. Still to cold for my liking, but I think I'm adjusting pretty well. I went ice fishing for the first time a couple of weeks ago."

"Brrr." Tony let out. He couldn't imagine anything worse than sitting around a little hole in the middle of a frozen lake, freezing your ass off, just to catch a couple of fish.

"I actually enjoyed it a lot. It was something different," Becky said, seeing the look on her friends face. "By the way, you still haven't visited me up there. I'm the one who is always coming down to Washington D.C. to visit you."

"I know," Tony said, chuckling a little. "I'm just not much of a cold weather person. This summer I'll come up to Alaska to visit you," Tony said. "I promise," he quickly added, seeing some doubt on Becky's face.

"Okay, but I'm holding you to that promise," Becky replied.

The door bell rang and Becky rose to answer it. After retrieving the pizza, Tony and Becky settled down on the couch and watched the DVD's Becky had brought.

After a couple hours of eating pizza, watching television and talking, they decided to call it a night.

Tony dug up a couple of blankets for Becky and set them on the couch. "I'm glad you're here," Tony said, as he headed to his bedroom.

"I'm happy to be here," Becky replied. "Goodnight Tony."

"Goodnight," Tony replied as he got into bed.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Across the street from Tony's apartment was a black van. Inside the van were three men, using a pair of binoculars to watch what was taking place inside Tony's apartment.

"Do you think this new girl will complicate things?" one of the men asked.

"No. In fact, I think she could become very useful," the leader of the trio replied.

"We could do this now. We could grab them while they're sleeping. It's the middle of the night. We probably wouldn't be seen," the man from the back seat said.

"No. We wait," the leader said. "I've waited ten years to extract my revenge on Tony Dinozzo, a few more days isn't going to kill me."

The lights inside the apartment went off. After a few more minutes, the car drove away.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N – Please R & R.

"You seem to be in a pretty cheerful mood today," Kate Todd said as she saw her partner strolling across the bullpen, to his desk.

"You bet," Tony said, giving Kate one of his best smiles.

"You had sex last night, didn't you," Kate accused.

"What? Why do you think every time I'm in a good mood I had sex?" Tony asked, surprised by her accusation.

"Because you never show up to work this happy on a Monday morning. Especially after we spend the whole weekend working a case," McGee said, poking his head out from behind his computer screen.

"Probie, for being a geek, you sometimes don't have very much common sense. If we were working a case all weekend, were would I have time to go and pick up a girl," Tony retorted.

"Well, yesterday you were flirting with Jaime Dahlia, the secretary that worked for Duke," Kate said. "Didn't you get her number after we finished talking to her?"

_Damn Kate and her observation skills_ Tony thought. "Did you guys just wake up this morning and decide it would be fun to pick on me today?" Tony asked. "But just so you know, I did not have sex last night."

"Keep your private life out of the office, Dinozzo," Gibbs said, turning the corner into the bullpen, a cup of coffee in his hand. Kate and McGee smirked.

_How does Gibbs do that_ Tony wondered, as he turned on his computer.

"I'm going to be in the Director's office all day attending meetings. I expect all of you to make yourself useful and go through some cold cases," Gibbs said. "And no computer games," Gibbs added, looking at Tony in particular. McGee and Kate were once again having fun at his expense, chuckling slightly.

Shortly after Gibbs left, Tony began getting restless. He never enjoyed the part of the job were he had to stay at his desk. He liked being out in the field, investigating, going undercover and interrogating people. He hated being stuck in an office all day, doing paper work and going over old cases.

"I'm going down to Abby's lab to visit her for a bit," Tony said, jumping to his feet and heading towards the elevator.

"Tony," Kate said, exasperated. "Gibbs told us to go over some old cases."

"Katie, I'm just going down to visit Abby for a few minutes. She's stuck in her lab all day with no company. Don't you think she deserves someone to visit her and talk to her every once in awhile."

"Hey, I visit her," McGee said.

"Tony, I know you. You're going to be down there forever, leaving us to go over all these cases."

"I'll be back in a few minutes," Tony said.

"You better. If Gibbs comes down here and wonders were you are, I'm not covering for you again," Kate replied. "And don't call me Katie," she said as the elevator doors opened.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Tony made his way into Abby's lab, cringing at the loud music that was playing. "Abby," Tony called out. Abby didn't respond. Her back was to him and she couldn't hear him over the music. Tony walked over and turned the music off.

"Hey," Abby replied, slightly indignant. "I was listening to that." She walked over to Tony and gave him a punch in the arm. "What are you doing down here? Did Gibbs send you down here?"

"Can't I just come down and pay you a friendly visit," Tony asked.

"Of course you can, but you don't do it very often," Abby replied.

"I do too," Tony said, turning a little indignant himself.

"When was the last time you came just to visit me?" Abby asked.

"That's easy," Tony said. Tony began frantically thinking about all the recent trips he had made to Abby's lab. "I visited you yester… wait a minute, I also had something from Gibbs to give you. Well, I visited you… never mind, Kate needed something from you." Tony scrunched his face, thinking harder. "Okay, I promise I'll visit you more," Tony finally said.

"You better," Abby said.

Changing the subject away from what a lousy friend he was, Tony said, "Becky's in town."

"Really," Abby said. "I love Becky. She's so much fun."

"I knew you'd be happy to hear that," Tony said.

"Hah!" Abby said.

"Hah! What?" Tony replied, slightly confused.

"See, even now, you didn't come down just to visit me, you came down here to tell me that Becky was in Washington," Abby said.

"Hey wait a minute, I came down to visit you. I just brought some good news with me too."

"We should have a few drinks together tonight," Abby said. "You should also invite Ducky. He'll love seeing Becky again. McGee and Kate have never even met her, have they. You should invite them too," Abby said, growing increasingly more excited. "Gibbs might even come. He really liked Becky."

Tony laughed at Abby's enthusiasm. "Yeah. I think she'd like that. She thinks you're like the coolest chick ever, and she's one of the few people who actually enjoy and will listen to Ducky's stories. I think she'd get along with Kate and McGee too."

"I remember the first time I met Becky. She's actually the reason I like you so much."

"Really," Tony said. "You didn't like me before," Tony asked.

"Well, we had only been working together for a few months and the only side I ever saw from you was this womanizing, frat boy side. It wasn't until I saw you with Becky that I saw a completely different side. A more compassionate, caring side."

Tony knew that he wasn't one to show too much emotion. For the most part, he kept people at arms length, only letting people see the frat boy part of Tony. For most of his life, the only person that he ever let see the real him was Becky. For the rest of the world, he wore a mask. Becky was the only person capable of tearing that mask down, revealing a different, more vulnerable Tony.

"Tony, are you alright?" Abby asked.

"What?" Tony said.

"I asked if you were alright. You just kind of got really quiet."

"Oh, I was just thinking," Tony replied. "I better get going. Kate's going to kill me if I'm gone too much longer," Tony said as he made his way out of Abby's lab and to the elevators.

"Okay. And don't forget you promised to come and visit me more often."

"I will," Tony said, but he doubted Abby could even hear him since she had already turned her music back on.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"Is Tony Dinozzo around?" asked a pretty, petite blonde woman standing in front of Kate's desk.

"He's not here right now, but he should be up in a few minutes," Kate said, looking at the girl curiously. An awkward moment occurred between the two of them. Kate didn't know whether she should shoo the girl away and take a message from her or tell her that she's welcome to wait for Tony. None of Tony's previous girls had ever visited Tony in the office. She didn't know what to make of this one. Before either Kate or the girl could speak again, Tony came walking into the bullpen.

"Hey Tony."

"Becky, what are you doing here?" Tony asked, giving Becky one of his famous Dinozzo smiles.

"One of my meetings just got over with and since I was already near the NCIS building, I thought I'd come by and visit you, and maybe say hi to Abby, Ducky and Gibbs if he's around."

"Well, Gibbs is busy with meetings all day, but Abby's down in her lab and Ducky is probably in the morgue," Tony said.

Kate and McGee were staring at the two curiously. Their main question was how this girl knew Ducky, Gibbs, Abby and Tony but they had never seen her before.

"I'd like you to meet Kate and McGee, my partners," Tony said, gesturing towards two very confused agents.

"Hi. I'm Becky," Becky said, giving them a small smile.

"We're old friends," Tony added, seeing the looks on Kate and McGee's faces.

"Tony's told me some great things about you," Becky said.

"Really," Kate asked, both her and McGee smirking and a little disbelieving.

"Yeah. Tony has told me that you're one of the smartest and strongest woman he's ever worked with," Becky said, looking in Kate's direction, "and that you're a genius when it comes to computers. He said that you could even give me a run for my money where hacking is concerned."

Both Kate and McGee looked at Tony while he shifted uncomfortably.

"Abby said she couldn't wait to see you again. She said that we should all go out and have some drinks tonight," Tony said, quickly changing the subject.

"That would be awesome," Becky replied.

"Yep. You, me, Ducky and Abby, and Kate and McGee, if they want to come," Tony said.

"And Gibbs?" Becky asked.

"Gibbs isn't much of a social drinker, but maybe if Abby asks really nicely he'll come," Tony replied.

"That's great. I'd love that. I think I'm going to go down and visit Abby and Ducky for a few minutes. Bye. Nice meeting you two," Becky said. She gave Tony a quick peck on the cheek and left.

Tony watched the elevator door close and headed for his desk.

"Who's she," Kate asked, becoming increasingly curious. This wasn't just another one of Tony's dates, since it seemed like Ducky, Abby and Gibbs all knew her too.

"She's an old friend," Tony said.

"An old friend," McGee said in a disbelieving tone.

"Yeah, why's that so hard to believe?" Tony asked.

"I don't know. I guess I just never really imagined you having any female friends," McGee replied.

"So, are you guys going to join us for a few drinks after work?" Tony asked.

"Maybe," Kate replied.

"Come on, Katie. It's not like you have other plans tonight," Tony said. "Or do you," Tony added with a mischievous grin.

"Okay, but stop calling me Katie," Kate replied.

"And you, McGee," Tony asked. "Unless you were planning on spending the evening as elf lord."

"No. I mean, sure, I'll come," McGee said, blushing slightly. McGee made a mental note about reminding Abby to keep what he says confidential.

The rest of the day went by uneventfully. Gibbs spent most of the time with meetings and the rest of the team continued going over some old cases, looking up from their files to engage in some bantering every so often.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

At an old, broken down house in a crime stricken neighborhood, two men were making plans for Tony Dinozzo.

"How much longer are we gonna wait before taking Dinozzo. I'm getting impatient with all this waiting and no action," Larry Welts complained.

"We have to be patient," the leader, John Corroner explained. "We don't want anything going wrong. I've waited ten years to get revenge on Tony Dinozzo and I'm not going to let anything stop me. I'm not going to allow anything to go wrong."

A large, burly man entered through the front door wearing a janitor's uniform. "What have you got for us Jim," John asked.

"That girl that was at Dinozzo's apartment last night visited him at the office. They're going to be meeting some of Dinozzo's friends for a couple of drinks after work."

"Very good. I think this will be our chance to strike," John said. So far, everything was working out perfectly. They had managed to get Jim a job working as a janitor at NCIS so he could be their eyes and ears. Because of this, they were easily able to keep tabs on Tony and his plans. It was relatively easy for Jim to listen in on Tony's conversations since he wasn't particularly quiet about his evening plans. _This new girl in Tony Dinozzo's life is going to be the icing on the cake_ thought John. _Tony Dinozzo's going to pay for what he did to me._


	3. Chapter 3

Later that evening, Becky, Tony, Kate, Abby, McGee, Ducky and even Palmer were enjoying themselves at a bar a couple of blocks away from the NCIS building. For once, Tony was relatively quiet, taking in everything that was going on around him. Tony wasn't surprised by how well Becky seemed to get along with his teammates. Like Tony, Becky had the ability to easily adapt to any type of situation and was comfortable around all types of people.

"How long have you known Tony?" Kate asked Becky, who was seated across from her.

"Tony and I have known each other for a very long time. We knew each other before we could even walk," Becky replied.

"Really," Kate said, not hiding her surprise.

Becky let out a laugh. "Yeah. My father and Tony's father were business partners. We practically grew up together. Whenever his father came to our place, he would always bring Tony along, and my father would do the same when he went over to their place. Even when Tony attended the Rhode Island Military Academy we still kept in touch and talked to each other almost daily.."

"Wow. I just never expected Tony's best friend to be a girl," Kate said.

"Yeah. Most people are surprised that we're such good friends. Tony's like an older brother to me though. He's one of the only people I know that I can always count on," Becky thoughtfully ended. She gave Tony a small smile, which Tony returned.

Kate carefully watched how Becky and Tony interacted with one another. Tony was a different person around Becky. He was less guarded and more open. Tony was open when it came to bragging about things like one night stands he's had with girls and cars, but when it came to more personal matters, Kate had noticed that he was a pretty closed person. He never really spoke much about his family, other than throwing out a few tidbits here and there. From the little information that Kate had received, she could sense that Tony didn't really having a loving and caring family. _If these two are such good friends, than how is it that I have never even heard of Becky._

Kate realized that through this one conversation with Becky, she learned more about Tony in two minutes than she had learned about him in the two years she had been working with him. While Kate was deep in thought, Becky and Ducky began conversing.

"How's Alaska treating you my dear?" Ducky asked.

"At first I wasn't to keen to be living in Alaska, but I'm adjusting pretty well and am even beginning to enjoy it a lot," Becky said.

"Yeah. I remember my first visit to Alaska. I met a young man by the name of Jonas Weather up at Wrangell St. Elias National Park. We wandered to far off one of the trails and ended up getting lost for hours…"

Becky listened to Ducky ramble on about his visits to Alaska and the many interesting people and places he saw.

Everyone was enjoying themselves, drinking and talking when Gibbs arrived. Abby was the first to notice his arrival and made room for him. "Hey Gibbs. You actually came."

"You were begging and putting a huge guilt trip on me Abs. What choice did I have?" Gibbs replied. Gibbs turned his attention to Becky and gave her a large, genuine smile that very few people had the privilege of seeing. "It's good to see you Becky. How're you doing?" he asked.

"I'm good. It's great to see again."

"Abby told me that you were at the office today and I missed you. What are you doing in Washington?" Gibbs asked.

"Meetings," Becky said.

"I had a few of those myself," Gibbs said. "Aren't they a bitch."

"They sure are," Becky agreed, laughing.

"Holed up in a room all day having these know-it-alls talk you to death," Gibbs said.

"Agreed."

As Gibbs turned his attention to Ducky, who was giving him information on a petty officer who was currently in his morgue, Becky and McGee, who were sitting side by side, began talking. "So, you consider yourself an expert hacker," McGee asked Becky.

Becky laughed. "I guess you could say that."

"Do you work with computers a lot?"

"Oh yeah. I work at the InterWest Technology Group in Anchorage. I'm a Clinical System Analyst."

"And Tony doesn't make fun of you for being a computer nerd?" McGee asked.

"Of course he makes fun of me," Becky said. "That's how you can tell he likes you. If he teases and makes fun of you, than he likes you, but if he's just polite to you, then he just tolerates you. That's just how Tony is."

_So Tony does like me, _McGee thought to himself. A small smile formed on his lips.

After a couple more beers, some talking and laughing and some dancing, they decided to call it a night.

"Well, I think we should all start heading home," Gibbs announced, rising from his seat. "It's getting late and I don't want my team to be slacking because they stayed up to late and drank too much."

Everyone murmured an agreement, bid each other goodnight and headed their separate ways.

What the team didn't know was that they were being watched by a stranger sitting in the corner of the bar, smoking a cigar and sipping his beer. He grabbed his cell phone from his pocket and made a phone call. "They're heading outside," was all he said before he hung up. He got up and headed out the exit himself.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"I had a blast," Becky said, feeling pretty drunk. "I love your team. They're all so fun and interesting," Becky gushed. "Oops," Becky said as she tripped over her own feet. Tony caught her and lifted her upright. "Thanks."

"No problem," Tony said, laughing. It was a rare sight to see Becky drunker than him. "They sure are an eccentric group, aren't they," Tony said thoughtfully. "We better take a cab home. We can come back for my car tomorrow." Even though Tony wasn't quite as drunk as Becky, he still felt drunk enough to the point were he knew he shouldn't drive.

"Sounds good," slurred Becky.

Becky and Tony were arm in arm as they turned the corner. Suddenly, a blunt object came crashing into Tony at full force, smashing into his face. Tony fell to his knees, taking Becky down with him. "What the hell," Tony said as he was drug back up to his feet by two large men. Another man grabbed Becky and hauled her up too.

"Who the hell are you guys? What do you want?" Tony asked.

"It's nice to see you again, Dinozzo," the man to his right said. The hairs on the back of Tony's neck stood up. _This guy knows who I am. _Tony turned his head to the right but it was to dark to make out the man's face.

"Who are you?" Tony asked again.

"You'll find out in due time," the voice to his right said again.

Without warning, Tony used his left leg and kicked it underneath the guy on his left. The guy fell down, taking Tony and the other man down with him. Before the two men could grab at him again, Tony lunged towards the third man that was holding Becky and tackled him to the ground, managing to pry him away from her.

"RUN!" Tony yelled at Becky.

Terrified and not knowing what to do, she began running as fast as her drunken body would allow. "Get her," Becky heard one of the men yell. Becky ran as fast as her legs would carry her, hoping that she could find a police officer or someone who could help them. She could hear one of the men behind her. _Come on_ she willed her feet. Becky turned another corner. Tripping over a crack in the sidewalk, Becky lost her balance and fell down. Her head connected with the sidewalk with a sickening CRACK and everything went black.


	4. Chapter 4

"Uhh! I woke up with a huge migraine this morning," Kate complained as she walked into the bullpen. She looked at Tony's empty desk. "Tony's not in yet?" Kate asked.

"Nope," McGee said, not tearing his eyes away from his computer.

"What are you so interested in?" Kate asked, noting that McGee was concentrating far too hard on whatever he was doing with his computer.

"I'm just putting in a new program that Becky told me about yesterday. It's for…"

"McGee, you can tell me what the program's for, but I guarantee you that I won't understand more than half of what you tell me," Kate said before McGee could babble on about whatever the hell he was doing. Kate knew that she was being slightly unreasonable, because she was the one that asked McGee what he was doing in the first place but she also knew that when you got McGee or Abby going about something regarding computers, they could talk endlessly, almost as long as Ducky could ramble on with one of his stories. Today Kate was definitely not in the mood to listen to that.

"Well, you asked me what I was doing," McGee grumbled, "and I was just telling you."

Kate sighed and sat down at her desk. "She seemed nice, didn't she," McGee said.

"What?" Kate asked, lifting her head slightly so she could look at McGee.

"Becky. I really liked her. I never thought Tony would have such good taste in friends."

"Me neither," Kate said. "You know, Tony keeps on surprising me. I've been working with Tony for nearly two years and I realize that I hardly know anything about him."

"What do you mean?" McGee asked.

"Well, before I met Becky, pretty much all I knew about Tony was that he liked pretty young girls, would never date the same girl for more than a few weeks, he enjoys classic cars and is a movie buff. Tony likes bragging about those things, but we don't really know him all that well."

"Yeah," McGee said. McGee had never really thought about it before, but Tony really wasn't as open as he first appeared. Just because Tony is loud and loves to brag about himself, it always seems like he is an open book, but he's a lot more private than McGee had ever imagined. "I mean, until yesterday, neither of us even knew about Becky. Tony never mentioned her. Considering that Becky and he are best friends, that does seem kind of odd."

"I agree. I wonder why Abby or Ducky had never mentioned Becky," Kate mused out loud.

"I don't know," McGee said.

Before their conversation could go any farther, Gibbs rounded the corner, his morning coffee in one hand and some folders in the other. Gibbs glanced at Tony's empty desk. "Dinozzo not in yet." Both Kate and McGee shook their heads. Gibbs looked at his watch. It was ten after nine. _Tony knows better than to be late_ Gibbs thought to himself.

Gibbs glanced worriedly at Tony's desk before heading to his own. His gut was telling him that something was wrong. _I'll give Tony a few more minutes_. _He better have a damn good reason for being late._

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

_What the hell is that sound_, Becky thought before even opening her eyes. _Is that my alarm clock? No, it can't be. That doesn't sound like my alarm. How much did I have to drink last night? I have a killer headache. _Becky sighed. _I better get up._

When Becky opened her eyes, she began to get a little panicky. _Where am I? _She looked around for a second and realized she was in a hospital. She was wearing a hospital gown, and was hooked up to a machine monitoring her heartbeat.

_What the hell happened last night? _Becky wondered. _Where's Tony? _ She remembered being so drunk that Tony had to practically carry her. Closing her eyes, she fought off her headache and nausea that was threatening to overtake her and concentrated on remembering what had landed her in this predicament. She remembered a couple of guys grabbing her and Tony. She remembered she was somehow able to escape. She closed her eyes once more, frustrated about not being able to recall anymore

"Hello," Becky called out. _What the hell are you doing? They're not going to be able to hear you behind a closed door. _Becky looked up and saw a red button that she assumed was for patients to push if they needed assistance. She pushed the button. Within seconds, a male doctor in his mid forties walked through the door.

"Ms. Parkins, I'm doctor Branson, it's good to see that you're awake."

"What happened? How do you know who I am?" Becky asked, still a little disoriented and confused.

"A man and a woman found you lying on the sidewalk, unconscious, and called an ambulance. You have a mild concussion and received a nasty cut on the side of your face. That required five stitches," the doctor explained. "And to answer your second question, we searched through your purse and found your ID."

"Was a man named Tony Dinozzo brought in?" Becky asked.

"I'm afraid not. Was he with you?" the doctor asked.

"He was with me for most of the night, until I fell and became unconscious," Becky said. She didn't feel comfortable telling the doctor everything that occurred. She just wanted to get out of the damn hospital so she could find Gibbs and tell him what had happened. "Can I leave?" Becky asked.

The doctor took a careful look at her. "Do you have a way to get home?" he asked her.

"I'm fine. I can take a cab home," Becky insisted.

"Are you sure we can't call someone for you?" Branson asked. "I would feel a lot better if I knew someone was watching over you."

_Does he think I'm a child and not capable of taking care of myself, _Becky thought bitterly. "I have someone to take care of me," Becky lied. "And like you said," she continued, "it's just a small concussion and a couple of stitches."

"Even a small concussion can be pretty serious," Branson warned her.

"I'll be fine," Becky insisted once more.

The doctor looked at her again and then finally agreed. "Okay. I'll discharge you. I'll have one of the nurses bring you your belongings."

Within minutes, Becky was dressed, had signed out and was waiting outside the hospital, trying to hail a taxi cab.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Gibbs slammed his phone on the desk in frustration. It was a quarter 'till ten and Gibbs still couldn't contact Tony. "Still can't get a hold of Tony," Kate asked worriedly.

"No. His phone's turned off. It went immediately to voice mail," Gibbs said.

"Do you think something's wrong. There must be an explanation for why Tony's so late," Kate said.

"There is," Gibbs replied. "And whatever it is, it's not good."

Abby bounced into the bullpen with a smile on her face, cheerful and content as usual, unaware that Tony was unaccounted for. Usually Abby didn't wander out of her lab, but she was bored and there wasn't any evidence to go over. Upon seeing the angry look on Gibbs face and the worried looks on Kate and McGee's faces, her smile dropped. She glanced towards Tony's desk and asked, "Where's Tony?"

"We don't know," McGee told her. "We can't get a hold of him. His phone's turned off."

"Oh no," Abby said exasperated. "That can't be good. Why don't you try calling Becky?"

"Gibbs has already called her a couple of times," Kate explained. "Her phone's shut off as well."

At that moment, the elevator door opened and Becky stepped out of it. They all took one look at Becky as she walked into the bullpen and they all immediately became tense and apprehensive. Becky's face was very pale. She looked as though she was about to pass out. Her stitches on her face were visible. "Oh my god Becky, what happened," Abby gasped.

"Tony and I were attacked last night," Becky said.

"What?" Kate, McGee and Abby said in unison. Gibbs remained quiet, waiting for Becky to continue.

"We were walking home from the bar. We were both pretty drunk, me more so, and decided we better take a cab home. Then a couple of men appeared out of nowhere." Becky closed her eyes, trying to recall what happened next. The others patiently waited for her to continue. After a few deep breaths, Becky went on. "I do remember that Tony managed to get the upper hand on them. He attacked the guy that was holding me and he told me to run," Becky said, trying to control her emotions. She was now on the verge of tears. Abby walked up to Becky and put her arm around her shoulders, comforting her. "I ran. I ran as fast as I could, trying to find someone that could help us. Help Tony," Becky continued, her voice breaking.

Becky took a couple more deep breaths before continuing. "That's all I remember of last night. I must've fallen or something and hit my head, because this morning I woke up in the hospital. I have no idea what happened to Tony. I asked the doctor if Tony was brought in, but the doctor said that he wasn't."

Everyone remained quiet for a few moments, digesting what Becky had said. Tony was missing. They had no idea who had taken him and why.

Gibbs was the first to recover. He asked, "Did you recognize any of them?"

"No," Becky said. "And even if I did know any of our attackers, I don't think I would've been able to identify them. It was to dark."

"Do you think this was random?" McGee asked.

"No. It wasn't random," Becky said, suddenly remembering something. "I remember one of the men knew Tony's name."

There was an awkward silence surrounding them. Everyone was quiet for a full minute before Becky spoke again. "I shouldn't have left Tony. I should've stayed and tried to help."

"There was nothing you could do," Abby told Becky, continuing to comfort her. "If you had stayed, you probably would've ended up missing too, or worse," she added.

"That's what Tony would've done for me. He would never have left me alone."

"You were trying to find help. And by what you have said, it sounds like you were outnumbered. Like Abby said, if you had stayed, you'd be missing too," Kate said, coming around her desk, trying to comfort Becky too.

After a few more moments of silence, Gibbs said, "Kate, you're with me."

"Were are we going Gibbs?" Kate asked.

"Back down to the bar to try and see if we can get any clues to what happened to Tony," Gibbs replied. "McGee, I want you to find anyone that might have a grudge against Tony. Look at everyone that Tony's put away and see if they are out of prison."

"I'll help you," Abby said, eager to do something.

"I want to help too," Becky said.

Gibbs looked at Becky. Becky was deathly pale and looked like she was struggling to keep upright. Gibbs knew that it didn't matter if he forbid her to help. Becky would help anyway. "Use Tony's desk. Help McGee and Abby," Gibbs gruffly said.

Satisfied, Becky sat at Tony's desk and began working. McGee, Abby and Becky began locating all the people Tony has put away and Kate and Gibbs headed out to the bar to try and find some clue to Tony's whereabouts.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N – Sorry this took me so long to get up. I'll try and get these chapters up a little faster.**

Tony slowly opened his eyes and found himself in an unfamiliar place. _What kind of mess did I get myself into this time_ Tony thought to himself. The room that he was currently residing in was dark. He couldn't make anything out. He figured he must be in a basement or cellar. There didn't appear to be any windows in the room. He was lying on a hard cement surface and there was a cold, eerie feeling about the room. The room also had a rancid, musky odor to it.

It took Tony a few seconds to realize that his hands were tied behind his back. To make matters worse, he also had a killer headache and was feeling a little nauseous. He decided to try and get himself into a sitting position. That was a mistake. The second Tony lifted his head up, he felt as if he was about to throw up. Tony closed his eyes, trying not to let the contents in his stomach rise up. Tony laid on the cement floor with his eyes closed for a couple more minutes. He opened them when he heard a door open.

The figure stopped halfway down the stairs and flicked on a switch, allowing some light into the room. Tony got his first look at the room. He was right. He was stuck in what appeared to be a basement. Other than a furnace in the corner of the room and a few boxes scattered around, the room was bare.

Tony looked at the stranger that was now moving towards him. "Hello Tony."

"Who are you?" Tony asked.

"You don't recognize me," the man asked.

"No, I'm afraid I don't," Tony dryly replied.

The stranger was now bent over Tony, there faces just inches apart. The man that was facing him was grungy. His breath reeked of alcohol and it took everything Tony had not to puke right there. The man looked as if he was in need of a bath. He had long, stringy hair that looked as if it hadn't been washed in a couple weeks. Some of his teeth were missing and the teeth that were there was a dull yellowish color.

"I'm someone that you put away years ago," the man said.

"I've put lots of people away. You're going to have to be more specific," Tony said.

"Think back to ten years ago, when you were just a rookie cop in Peoria. My girlfriend and I were one of your first drug busts." Tony knew the mans face looked familiar, but he couldn't place it. Now he knew who this man was.

"Corroner." John Corroner was one of the very first arrests he had ever made. Corroner's girlfriend Debra and he had been selling meth near a local high school for apparently quite some time before Tony went undercover and busted them.

"That's right. I was sentenced to ten years in prison because of you," John spat.

"I know, I was there," Tony said.

"I guess you must also know that my girlfriend died in prison," John said. "She couldn't handle it and ended up killing herself," John continued, on the verge of tears. His eyes were glazed over, but he didn't allow any tears to fall.

Tony remained silent. "I'm going to make you pay for what happened to me and my girlfriend."

"All I did was arrest you. You did this to yourself," Tony calmly said. Tony was rewarded with a punch in the face. His head spun around, knocking into the wall. The coppery taste of blood filled his mouth. Tony closed his eyes and took a couple of deep breaths, trying to keep down the bile that threatened to fill his mouth down. He was still feeling nauseous and knew that any sudden movements could cause him to easily throw up.

"I'm going to make you pay for what happened to me," John said once more.

"Look," Tony began, deciding to take a different approach. "If you let me go, we can forget this happened. You haven't done anything to serious yet. I won't tell anyone."

"Maybe you can forget, but I can't. I lost the one person I loved and cared about and I'm going to make you pay dearly for that."

Even though Tony didn't show any outward signs of fear, on the inside he was terrified.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

At NCIS, McGee, Becky and Abby, who was currently using Kate's desk, searched through all of the arrests and grudges Tony has made throughout the years.

"Wow! Tony has sure put a lot of people in jail," Abby said.

"Yeah," McGee said, hanging up his phone and crossing another name off the list. "And that means a lot of family members to go through too," grumbled McGee.

At that moment, Ducky came into the bullpen. "I just heard about Anthony. Do you have any leads?" Ducky asked.

"Unfortunately not yet, Ducky," Abby said. "Most of the people Tony has put away are either in jail or dead."

"And none of the family members I've talked to seemed like they were interested on getting revenge on Tony," McGee continued.

Ducky turned to look at Becky, who was seated behind Tony's desk. Ducky took in Becky's deathly pale complexion. "Dear, you look horrible. You need to lie down. Let me take a look at you," Ducky said.

"No. Tony's still missing. I'm not going to rest until we find him and I know that he's safe."

"Dear, you're not going to do anyone any good, including Tony, if you end up passing out in the middle of the bullpen. Come downstairs and let me take a look at you."

Becky relented. "Okay Ducky." She got up and followed Ducky to the elevator. McGee and Abby continued to look for any leads that could help them find Tony.

After a few more minutes, McGee excitedly said, "Abby, I have a suspect."

Abby was out of her chair in a flash and at McGee's side, looking over his shoulder. "Who?" she asked.

"A guy by the name of John Corroner. Tony went undercover and put him and his girlfriend away for the selling of meth near a high school in Peoria."

"What about his girlfriend?" Abby asked.

McGee skimmed over the material he was reading on the computer and then said, "Apparently his girlfriend killed herself while in prison two weeks after she was sentenced."

"Oh my god," was all Abby said.

"I better call Gibbs," McGee said as he picked up the phone.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Gibbs and Kate stood outside the bar, scanning the area for any clues that might help them locate Tony. "There's Tony's car," Kate pointed out. It was parked across the street from the bar. "But Becky said that they had decided to take a cab home, so they probably walked for a little bit looking for one."

Gibbs just nodded. They started walking around a little bit when Gibbs found Tony's cell phone and gun hidden beneath a couple of plants. He picked them up and bagged them. "Kate," Gibbs called out. Kate hurried over to were Gibbs was standing.

"Tony's phone and gun," Kate quietly said.

"Yep. They must have been attacked around here." Gibbs looked up and noticed a security camera attached to the store across the street. He couldn't believe their luck. Tony's kidnappers had done this all right in view of a security camera. "Kate, look," Gibbs said, pointing at the camera. "Go and see if you can get yesterdays tape from them," Gibbs ordered.

"On it Gibbs," Kate said, already halfway to the store. Gibbs was about to head back to the car when his cell phone rang.

"Gibbs."

"Boss we think we might know one of Tony's kidnappers."

There was a pause. "Well, go on McGee," Gibbs impatiently said.

"Apparently a man by the name of John Corroner was released from prison three weeks ago. Tony put him and his girlfriend, Debra Pewter away for the selling of drugs near a high school in Peoria. I've also found out that Pewter killed herself while in prison, a couple of weeks after she was sentenced."

"Good work, McGee," Gibbs said. "We found out were Tony and Becky were attacked. There was a security camera around that might have caught something. Kate's getting it for us now. We'll be back in a bit and we can go from there," Gibbs said, hanging the phone up. Just as he got off the phone with McGee, Kate came out, tape in hand.

"That was McGee. We have a suspect," Gibbs said.

Gibbs and Kate climbed into the company Sedan. As Gibbs pulled out of the parking space at top speed, Kate held on for dear life. On the way back to NCIS, Gibbs gave Kate the details regarding the suspect.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"How's your head feel," Ducky asked as he did a quick checkup on Becky.

"It's been better," Becky said. "The doctor told me I received a mild concussion."

After looking Becky over, Ducky said, "there's a futon in Abby's lab. Go lie down for a bit," Ducky gently ordered her.

"But Ducky, we have to find Tony. If something happens to him, I'll never forgive myself," Becky said, her voice breaking for the umpteenth time that day.

"We will find Tony, but right now, you need to get some rest. You look like you're about to topple over dear," Ducky said. By looking at Becky, Ducky could tell that it wasn't just the physical strain, but also the emotional strain that was taking a toll on her.

"Okay. But if the team finds anything regarding Tony's whereabouts, I want to know right away," Becky said, hopping off one of the autopsy tables that Ducky was using to examine her.

"I promise that we'll tell you," Ducky said, leading Becky to the elevator. "You know your way to Abby's lab. I want you to get some rest. I'll be up in an hour to wake you. Standard concussion procedure."

"Okay Ducky."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N – This is kind of a short chapter. A lot of it deals with how the members of the team view Tony.**

When Kate and Gibbs arrived back at NCIS, he gave Abby the tape and ordered her to look at it and see if she could get anything off of it that would help Tony. "McGee and Kate, I want you to call the Peoria police department and find out what you can about this Corroner guy. I also want to know everything about him, from the day he was born up until now, including any friends that he might have. Becky said there were a couple of guys attacking them. I want to know who was helping him. Where's Becky," he suddenly asked, noticing her absence.

"Ducky told her that he wanted her to lay down. She looked pretty bad," McGee said.

Gibbs didn't say anything. He just nodded and headed towards the elevator. Seconds later, the elevator door opened and Gibbs disappeared from sight as they closed behind him.

"Do you think Tony's okay?" Kate asked, a hint of worry in her voice. She could hear Tony taunting her. She looked up and saw Tony sitting at his desk, giving her one of his most annoying smirks. _So you do care, Katie, _he said. "No, I don't. Without you around though, that leaves more paperwork for the rest of us," Kate automatically said.

"What?" McGee asked, giving Kate a confused look.

Kate hadn't realized she had spoken out loud. "Nothing," Kate said quickly, hiding behind a bunch of files so McGee couldn't see her red face.

"But to answer your question, I don't know. I hope Tony's okay," McGee replied. McGee was lost in his own thoughts. Yeah, Tony teased him endlessly, but they did have a friendship going on. McGee had gotten used to Tony's Probie or McGeek nicknames and even sort of enjoyed them. They needed to find Tony. The office wouldn't be the same without him around.

Kate glanced back up at Tony's desk, but this time Tony wasn't sitting in it. Tony could be an egotistical, womanizing jerk at times and annoying as hell, but he was still Kate's partner and she cared about him. If anything were to happen to him, she really didn't know what she would do. She had gotten used to being around Tony, and even though she would never openly admit it, she always enjoyed coming to work every morning because of the playful, albeit sometimes mean, banter that they would engage in. _You better be okay, Dinozzo._ Kate sadly took one last look at Tony's desk and realized that she would've given anything to see Dinozzo over there, grinning at her like an idiot.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"Hey Ducky. McGee told me that you made Becky lie down."

"Indeed I did Jethro. I first checked her over to make sure she was okay. She looked as if she was at death's door. Poor girl," Ducky said, shaking his head slightly. "Do you have any leads on the kidnappers?" Ducky asked.

"Yeah, we do. McGee found us a suspect. His name is John Corroner. Tony put him in away back when he was a cop in Peoria."

Seeing the look of apprehension in his friend's eyes, Ducky said, "We will find Tony, Jethro."

"I hope so Ducky. The team needs him," Gibbs said. _I need him_. Even though Gibbs never showed very much affection, especially towards Tony, unless you counted heads slaps as a sign of affection, he really did consider Tony a friend and almost like a son to him. Tony could be annoying and lazy at times, but he always got the job done, was a great investigator and was always thinking outside the box. He could find things out and come up with ideas that other agents would never even think of. Tony also kept Gibbs grounded. Whenever Gibbs got to serious about a case, Tony always had a way to lighten him up. If that didn't work, Tony would do something to annoy Gibbs and allowed Gibbs to yell at him without saying a word. No one would ever dare talk to Gibbs the way Tony does. Tony never treated Gibbs with disrespect, but he was more courageous than any other agent that had ever worked for him, and always spoke his mind. If he thought Gibbs was wrong, he would say so. He wouldn't cower and back down under Gibbs intense stare like almost all other agents did. Tony was special and would make a damn good team leader someday.

Gibbs was so lost in his own thoughts that he didn't even notice that Ducky was rambling on, telling him a story about what this reminded him of.

"I have to go Ducky," Gibbs said, exiting the morgue.

"Well, you'll listen to my story, won't you," Ducky said to a corpse that he was currently working on.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Tony had drifted off to sleep once his captor had left. He was abruptly woken up by a bucket of cold water that was being dumped all over him. The water seeped into his clothes, causing him to instantly shiver.

"Can't have you sleeping all day, can we," Corroner said as he kicked Tony hard in the ribs.

"You know there are better ways to wake people up," Tony said, groaning as he opened his eyes.

John Corroner was standing over him with a smug little smile on his face. Tony wanted nothing more than to wipe that smile off. Realizing that he had use of his feet, he swung his lower body at Corroner's feet, causing the man to fall onto the cement floor with a crash. As quickly as he could, Tony got himself up and headed towards the stairs. Corroner was still stunned by what had happened. Tony swiftly ran up the stairs, not even thinking of how he was going to open the door with his arms tied up. When he reached the top of the staircase, he was welcomed by two large men. One of the men punched Tony in the jaw, causing him to topple back down the stairs.

Tony fell down on his left arm and a scream escaped his lips. Judging by the immense pain he felt and the weird angle his arm was suddenly in, he came to the conclusion that his arm was now broken. "So, you thought you could escape from me, did you," Corroner said. He had regained his composure and was now standing over Tony. The two men that had blocked the door were also at the bottom of the stairs. "You're going to pay for that little stint you pulled Dinozzo," Corroner said.

The two men roughly pulled Dinozzo to his feet, eliciting another scream from Tony as one of the men grabbed his broken arm. They held him tightly as Corroner continued to beat the agent until he fell unconscious, only being held up by the two men on either side of him. Corroner ended the beating with a quick, hard punch to Tony's stomach. The men dropped Tony in the middle of the floor and began leaving. "I want you two to bring a chair down here and tie him up to that. I don't want him pulling anything else," Corroner told the two men.


	7. Chapter 7

"What have you got for me," Gibbs asked as he entered the bullpen, a cup of coffee in his hand.

"Well, we found out that Corroner was released from prison 23 days ago, but is on probation for five more years. He isn't supposed to leave the state," McGee said.

"We talked to his probation officer, and he said that Corroner has been missing for about two weeks," Kate continued. "They've searched for him and there's a warrant out for his arrest, but so far they've come up empty handed."

"Has he contacted anyone?" Gibbs asked.

"The prison guards said that Corroner was often visited by a man named Larry Welts," McGee said, taking over again. "Larry Welts was also the person that Corroner called the most while in prison. Upon doing some more research on him, we discovered that Corroner and Welts were high school friends. It appears that Welts has done some jail time also. He also did a six month stint in rehab not to long ago."

"It seems likely that Corroner was planning to do this long before he was even released," Kate said.

"Probably," Gibbs said. "Did Corroner contact anyone else?" Gibbs asked.

"Not while in prison," Kate said. "But once he was released from prison, he made a lot of phone calls from his apartment phone to a man named Jim Elliot. It doesn't appear that Elliot and Corroner had any sort of relationship with each other prior to Corroner's release from prison. We faxed pictures of Elliot and Welts to Corroner's probation officer and he recognized them. He says that the few times he had gone to see Corroner before he disappeared, these two were with him."

As Kate said this, McGee put pictures of the three guys on the plasma screen so Gibbs could get a look at them. All three of them looked as if they had their fair share of drug experience, all of them looking pretty grungy, missing some of their teeth, bloodshot eyes and plenty of scars and open sores. They were also big, muscular men.

_Damn it, Dinozzo. You don't even go looking for trouble. It somehow always finds you,_ Gibbs thought.

"Wait a minute," Kate said, looking closely at one of the pictures. "I recognize that man," she said, pointing to the third picture.

"From where?" Gibbs asked.

"Well, I don't know him, but I know I've seen him before," Kate explained. "Where have I seen you," Kate muttered under her breath.

Gibbs waited impatiently as Kate tried to recall how she knew this man. Suddenly it hit her. "He works here."

"What?" Gibbs asked incredulously a hint of fury in his voice. How could NCIS allow this man to slip in? _Don't they do damn background checks anymore._

Kate was typing away furiously at her keyboard, trying to locate the man. She finally came up with his profile and put it up on the plasma screen for McGee and Gibbs to see. It was definitely the same man, although he was less grungy in this picture than in his previous one. "He's a janitor at NCIS," Kate read. "He works the 9am – 5pm shift. He only started working here about two weeks ago."

"Dammit," Gibbs swore under his breath.

"He looks more cleaned up in that picture," McGee observed. "I've noticed him too. I remember thinking that he did seem to enjoy cleaning around our area. Well, now we know why."

"He was spying on Tony," Kate said, stating the obvious.

"Does he have an address?" Gibbs asked.

"Um…It says that he's currently residing in a Motel 6 until further notice," Kate said.

"Where's this motel located?" Gibbs asked.

"Georgia Avenue," Kate replied.

"Grab your gear," Gibbs said as he headed for the elevator.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Gibbs came to an abrupt stop in front of the Motel 6. The three agents made there way out of the car and into the office. Upon entering the office, they saw a young woman that appeared to be in her early twenties at the counter. She was a medium built woman with quite a few piercings, including her nose, eyebrow and quite a few in her ears. She wore a tank top that showed off her arms, which were covered in tattoos. Kate shook her head. She never understood why a woman would want to do something like that to there body.

"What can I do for you?" the young woman asked.

"NCIS." Gibbs said, holding out his badge for the woman to look at. "We're looking for someone that might have checked into your Motel a couple weeks ago. His name is Jim Elliot," Gibbs continued as he placed a picture on the counter for the woman to examine. "Have you seen this man, Ms. Shoder," Gibbs asked, reading the woman's nametag.

Jodi carefully looked at the picture and then said, "I recognize this guy. He checked out a while ago though. He also had a couple of his buddies with him."

"These two," Kate asked, holding two other pictures in front of her.

"Yeah," Jodi replied.

"We need all the information you have on this guy," Gibbs said.

"Sure thing," the woman replied, popping her gum as she began typing. "Let's see. They checked in on February 26 and then checked out three days later, on March 1. This isn't in the file, but they did tell me they weren't sure how long they were staying. They said they'd probably be staying a few weeks, so I thought it was odd when they only stayed three days. "When they checked out, one of the guys told me that they had found a more permanent place to stay."

"Do you have a credit card number?" Kate asked.

"Oh, they paid with cash," Jodi said.

"Aren't customers required to present a credit card in case of theft or damages to your motel?" Kate asked.

"Yeah, but we don't enforce it. I mean look at this place," Jodi said with a wave of her hand. "It's not like they can do much more damage here."

_Point taken_ Kate thought.

"Do you have any more information on these guys?" Gibbs asked.

"No. Sorry," Jodi replied.

"Thanks for your help. If you think of anything else, give us a call," Gibbs said, handing Jodi a card with his number on it.

"Sure thing," Jodi replied.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

For once, Abby's lab was quiet. There was no music in the background to keep her company. Becky was sound asleep on the futon while Abby was concentrating on the video feed. Using her computer, she managed to lighten up the picture. She saw a black van pull up to the curb. Three men exited the van, one of them holding a baseball bat. Two of the men stayed behind while one of them headed towards the direction of the bar. Abby zoomed in to see the license plate number. "Yes, I have you now," Abby said. Before calling Gibbs, she watched the rest of the video. She winced as she saw one of the men bash the baseball bat into Tony's face. She was so engrossed in the video that she didn't even hear Ducky coming up behind her.

"Abigail, is that the security video?"

Abby jumped and then blushed slightly, a little embarrassed about someone being able to sneak up on her so easily. "Yes it is. We finally have something to go on though," Abby exclaimed happily as she picked up her phone and proceeded to call Gibbs.

Ducky made his way over to Abby's futon and gently nudged Becky. "Becky, I need you to wake up," he quietly said.

Becky rose and became instantly alert. Ducky took a little flashlight out of his pocket and proceeded to look at her eyes, making sure that she was fine. As Ducky did that, Abby was on the phone with Gibbs.

"Gibbs," Gibbs replied in his usual curt voice.

"It's Abby. I've got something that might help us find Tony." Her concern for Tony was evident. She was direct and to the point with Gibbs, which was very un-Abby like.

"Okay. We're on our way back. We'll be there in about ten minutes."

A little while later, McGee, Kate and Gibbs arrived in the lab. Gibbs handed Abby a Caf-Pow. There attention then became focused on the plasma screen. Ducky and Becky were also there. When the black van pulled up, Abby zoomed in on the license plate. The license plate number read BC4833.

"Put a BOLO out for that van, McGee," Gibbs ordered. He directed his attention at Abby. "I know you didn't call us down here just to give us the license plate number," Gibbs said. "What else have you got for us?"

Abby was bouncing on the balls of her feet, excited to give the team more evidence to help find their missing friend. "You know me so well, Gibbs. It took me about a dozen viewings of the security tape to finally find something else to help us locate Tony. I was this close to giving up on the tape," Abby said, holding her index finger and thumb less than an inch apart. "But then something else caught my eye. I was so focused on what was happening to Becky and Tony that I…"

"Abby," Gibbs growled, growing impatient, just wanting Abby to get to the point.

Abby immediately became quiet and focused her attention to her computer. "Look at this," she said, zooming in.

The rest of the team looked at the plasma screen. "There's a man in the background," Kate said.

"Yep. And not just any man. We all saw him yesterday night," Abby said.

Gibbs looked closely at the man. He was standing only about ten feet from were the attack was taking place. He was a young man, probably in his early to mid twenties. He looked to be a little over six feet, lean and slightly muscular. He had blonde hair and a couple days growth on his face. He wasn't doing anything, just standing there, watching the men beat up his agent. "He was one of the bartenders," Gibbs said, suddenly recognizing the man.

"Exactly," Abby said.

Gibbs directed his attention towards Abby and said, "Good job Abs." He finished his praise with a quick peck to the cheek.

Gibbs walked out of the lab and to the elevator. "McGee, you're with me," he said, looking over his shoulder in McGee's direction.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Gibbs was once again standing outside of Black Silvers bar, McGee behind him. The two agents made there way inside, a very angry Gibbs leading the way. The fact that they still hadn't found Tony was driving Gibbs crazy. For some reason, trouble always seemed to follow Tony. This was almost becoming routine for Gibbs team.

Upon entering the bar, Gibbs quickly located one of the bartenders and roughly pulled him aside, without saying a word.

"What the hells going on here?" the bartender asked.

"I need to know who this guy is," Gibbs said, pulling out a photograph of the man they had seen on the surveillance tape.

"Who the hell are you guys. I'm not giving out any information until I know who you are," the man replied.

"NCIS. We think this man," Gibbs said, holding out his badge and pointing to the photo, "has something to do with one of our agent's disappearances."

The bartender looked closely at the badge and then gave out the information. "This man's name is Tommy Welsings."

"We need his address," Gibbs said.

"Actually, he's probably on his way down here," the bartender replied. "He usually works night shifts, but we're shorthanded and I have an appointment in about half an hour, so he volunteered to cover for me. He should be here in about fifteen minutes, maybe sooner."

"We'll wait," Gibbs said, heading to one of the tables in the corner, leaving McGee to scurry after him.

Less than ten minutes later, the man pictured in the photograph walked through the door. He wasn't aware of Gibbs and McGee, even though the bar was nearly empty, with a couple of customers scattered about. The bartender that had previously talked to Gibbs began addressing Tommy. He whispered something to Tommy and pointed in Gibbs direction. Welsings looked in the direction the finger was pointing and saw Gibbs. His face immediately fell as he saw Gibbs and McGee approaching him. Looking back to the doors he had just recently entered, he contemplated making a run for it. Deciding against it, he faced the angry ex-marine.

"What can I do for you special agent Gibbs?" Tommy asked, trying to sound as nonchalant as he could.

"You witnessed an attack and kidnapping last night around 2300, is that correct," Gibbs questioned.

"What? No. I, I was…" the man stammered.

"We have a surveillance tape of you standing off to the right of three men attacking a man and a woman," Gibbs snarled. "Are you still going to deny that you didn't know anything about this?"

"Look, I was just on a fifteen minute break and went out to get some fresh air and have a puff. I did hear some commotion, but I wasn't really aware of what was happening. It was dark and couldn't make out very much. I just thought it was a bunch of teenagers messing around," Tommy quickly tried to explain.

Gibbs wasn't buying it. He grabbed the young boy by the shirt and pushed him up to the wall, there faces only an inch or so apart. The few customers that were in the bar looked up at the pair curiously. McGee stood off to the side, watching his boss threaten the young man. McGee hoped that if he ever went missing, Gibbs would show the same dedication in finding him as he did with finding Tony. Despite how hard Gibbs could be on Tony, it was evident to everyone who knew the pair, that there was a special relationship between them. Aware of the bystanders curiously watching him, Gibbs began to whisper so only Tommy was able to hear him. "You listen to me. If you don't tell me everything you know regarding my missing agent, I will throw your ass right in prison."

Tommy was visibly shaken now. However, he quickly regained his composure and didn't give up anything. "You can't do that. I didn't do anything. I want a lawyer before I tell you anything. I know I have a right to have a lawyer present."

Gibbs ignored what the young man said. Instead, he turned his attention to his youngest field agent standing beside him and said, "Handcuff him. If he's not going to speak here we're taking him back with us."

"What? You can't do that," the man cried, outraged by what was happening. McGee stepped up beside the young man, a gun in his hand, daring Tommy to try anything. He then tightly handcuffed him.

"Excuse me," said the bartender that was standing off the side, observing everything that was going on. "If you take him, who's going to run this place. I'm the only one here and he's supposed to be covering my shift."

"Not our problem," Gibbs gruffly said.

They left, dragging an unwilling bartender with them. McGee pushed him into the black company Sedan and they were off.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Tony regained consciousness slowly and painfully. He opened his eyes. It took a few minutes to comprehend what was going on. His whole body ached, especially his arm, making it hard for him to think. He realized that he wasn't lying on the floor anymore. He was tied to a chair. Darkness surrounded him. His captors had left him and had shut the lights off behind them.

Tony had complete confidence in Gibbs, Becky and the rest of the team finding him. He just didn't want to play the role of the helpless victim. He looked around, trying to figure out a way for him to escape. _If only I could reach my knife. _Tony's head was killing him, making it hard for him to concentrate. Tony closed his eyes again, waiting for the pain to subside. It slowly turned into a dull ache, annoying but at least manageable. Tony heard the door open again and heard his captors approaching him. The light was switched on and he saw that Corroner was brandishing a baseball bat.

_This isn't good_ Tony thought to himself.

"Not so tough now, are you pretty boy," Corroner asked, waving the bat inches from Tony's face. Tony remained silent, not wanting to antagonize the man anymore than he already had. Then without warning, Corroner swung the bat and caught Tony in the stomach, definitely cracking, if not breaking, a few ribs. Tony groaned, trying not to scream. He didn't want to give them the satisfaction of hearing him scream this time.

Corroner and his two goons just laughed. "You really don't think you're going to get away with this, do you?" Tony asked.

"And why wouldn't we?" asked Corroner, swinging the bat once again, connecting with his chest.

"Because my boss," Tony gasped, "is an ex-marine. He's not going to give up until he finds me and kills you."

"I have no doubt that he'll find you," Corroner replied, landing a well placed blow on Tony's kneecap. "But all he'll find is your body, thrown into a river or pond."

Another blow was directed to one of Tony's shins. Tony bit his lip so hard that he could taste the coppery blood beginning to fill up his mouth. "If you think this is bad, this is nothing compared to how your going to feel after tomorrow's over with," Corroner said. Corroner continued to beat Tony with the bat, even after he fell unconscious.

After Corroner was satisfied, he motioned for the men to follow him back upstairs.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Upstairs, the three men drank some beers, smoked and planned their next move. Corroner was getting almost giddy regarding the next stage of their plan. As evening neared, Corroner almost couldn't contain himself. _Pretty soon Dinozzo's going to find out what real pain is._

"Jim, I want you to stay here and keep an eye on Dinozzo. I doubt he'll be able to pull anything in the state he's in, but I don't want to take any chances," Corroner said. "Larry, you're coming with me."

Larry followed John Corroner to the black van. Corroner pulled out of the driveway and headed to their destination. A sadistic smile was pasted over Corroner's face as he thought about the pain he was about to cause Tony Dinozzo.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N – I'm sorry it took me so long to update. Some computer problems and personal life just kind of got in the way. Hope you like this next chapter. R&R Please. I've enjoyed reading all the reviews.

Disclaimer: I still don't own any of these characters, unfortunately.

"Do you think Gibbs will get this guy to come clean and tell us what he knows?" Kate asked.

"Of course he will," McGee said. "This is Gibbs we're talking about."

Kate and McGee were looking through the one way mirror at the nervous young man. He was very fidgety and jumpy. Gibbs had left him in interrogation so he could stew for a bit before questioning the man.

A few minutes later, Gibbs marched past McGee and Kate and into the interrogation room.

As soon as the man saw Gibbs, he said, "I want a lawyer. I'm not telling you anything until I get a lawyer."

Gibbs simply ignored the young man. He threw a couple of pictures on the table for Welsings to look at. "Are you going to tell me what you were doing at 2300 last night? How do you know these men?"

"Nothing. Like I said, I was on my break and I went out for a puff."

"Bullshit," Gibbs spat.

From behind the glass, Kate said, "He's lying."

"Maybe he really is telling the truth. Maybe he doesn't have anything to do with this," McGee said.

"No. He's lying. He's too uncomfortable. He's leaning back instead of forward. His movements are too forced. He's far too stiff. He's not making eye contact either," Kate babbled on, her profiling skills kicking in.

"So," Gibbs continued, walking around the room, forcing his voice to remain calm. "Your trying to tell me that you were standing only a few feet away from were this attack was taking place, yet you didn't do anything. You didn't call the police or call for help. You just stood there smoking your cigarette."

"I already told you that I thought it was just a bunch of teenagers messing around," Tommy said.

"That's a pretty flimsy lie," Gibbs stated calmly.

"It's not a lie," the man protested. There was an uncomfortable silence that took place in the small room. "If I told you what I know, what kind of deal would I get?" the man finally asked.

"Deal. You're not in any kind of position to be asking us for a deal. First you tell us what you know regarding special agent Dinozzo's kidnapping," Gibbs demanded.

The young man weighed his options and then decided to open up. Looking up into Gibbs menacing cool blue eyes, Tommy Welsings began talking. "These men," he said, waving at the photos sitting on the table, "have been regulars in the bar for a few weeks, coming in almost every night. Before then, I had never seen them before." There was a pregnant pause before Welsings continued. "Since they started coming over to the bar regularly, I got to know them pretty well. They seemed like pretty cool guys. This man," he said, pointing to a picture of Jim Elliot, "told me that he was a janitor at NCIS during one of our brief conversations."

There was another pause, this one longer than before. At this point, Welsings knew that he was in major trouble. He was trying to figure out the best way to tell these federal agents what he knew while getting in as little trouble as possible. "After awhile, we became pretty friendly and comfortable around one another. One night, about four or five days ago, I was closing up the bar. It wasn't until I was trying to hail a cab that I noticed these three waiting outside the bar. They came up to me and asked me to help them."

Looking up at Gibbs angry face, Welsings took a few deep breaths and continued. "They told me they needed to teach this guy they knew a little lesson. They didn't tell me that they were going to kidnap him," Welsings added hastily. "I just thought they were going to rough him up a little bit."

"What did they need you for?" Gibbs asked, not really believing that Corroner and his men would ask an outsider for help.

"They just wanted me to keep a look out for them. You know, make sure no cops or anyone else came by," Welsings said.

"And they asked you. Someone they had only known for a few weeks," Gibbs asked with a raised eyebrow

"Yeah," he said. "Last night, Jim pointed out the man they wanted to rough up a bit and so I waited until Jim left and then I took my break."

There was an awkward silence that took place in the interrogation room. Gibbs was gazing at the young man so intently that Welsings had to look down at the floor. "I really didn't know they were going to go as far as they did. I just thought they'd rough him up a little bit. Nothing more than that." Looking back up, Welsings said, "I do know were they are living though."

Gibbs instantly became alert and animated by this. "I guess I don't know exactly were they live, but when I asked them if they were still staying at the Motel 6, John told me that he had family here. He told me that they had recently gone on vacation and were allowing him and his friends to stay and watch over the house." The young man had barely gotten his last sentence out before Gibbs had stormed out of the interrogation room.

"Hey, What about me?" Tommy Welsings called out to the now empty room.

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"McGee, Kate, I need you two to find any relatives of Corroner's living in the D.C. area," Gibbs barked as he stormed out of interrogation.

"On it boss," McGee said, while Kate just nodded.

"I need some coffee," Gibbs muttered.

Up in the bullpen, McGee and Kate were frantically working on trying to locate any of Corroner's relatives.

Minutes later, Kate squealed, uncharacteristically so. "McGee, I have something," she exclaimed.

"What do you have?" Gibbs asked, overhearing what Kate had just said. He had a fresh cup of coffee in his hand.

"Corroner does have a living relative in the D.C. area, only about twenty minutes from here," Kate said. "Her names Katherine Meldorny, a retired cafeteria worker. She's Corroner's great aunt, 75 years old."

"What's her address?" Gibbs asked.

"1206, Brenning Road," Kate said.

Gibbs hurried towards the elevator, Kate and McGee closely following.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Gibbs made a sharp right, causing the backend of the car to fishtail. Gibbs was swerving in and out of traffic, almost causing half a dozen car crashes on the way.

McGee was in the backseat, closing his eyes and concentrating on not throwing up. No matter how many times McGee rode with Gibbs, the nauseous feeling never went away. What should've been a twenty minute drive from the NCIS building took a little over ten minutes.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Jim Elliot was sitting at kitchen table when he heard a car screeching to a stop outside the house. He hurried to the window and peaked outside. _Son of a bitch_ Jim thought to himself. He saw two men and a woman step out of the car carrying guns.

As the three NCIS agents hurried to the front door, guns ready, Jim Elliot didn't think twice about leaving there prisoner and saving his own ass. Without gathering any of his belongings, he snuck out the back door just as he heard the front door opening.

"NCIS," Gibbs shouted as he cautiously made his way through the house, Kate and McGee close behind, covering him. He wanted to just run through the house looking for Dinozzo, but he knew that he wouldn't do any one any good if he was reckless and ended up getting shot.

"They were recently here," Kate said, pointing at the table the contained cigarette butts and beer cans.

"They're not here now," Gibbs said.

"Boss," McGee called from the living room. Kate and Gibbs rushed into the living room and saw McGee opening a door. "This is a basement," McGee said, looking down into the dark stairway.

Gibbs pushed his way past McGee and hurried down into the basement, Kate and McGee following. They were close to Tony. Gibbs could feel it. Halfway down the stairs, Gibbs saw a light and flicked it on. The lights flickered for a few seconds. Gibbs took the last few stairs down into the basement. As he reached the bottom, his eyes scanned the room. What Gibbs saw took his breath away. He was going to kill Corroner and his two goons with his bare hands. In the corner of the room was his senior field agent, tied up to a chair. Tony was one mass bruise. His body was covered in black, blue and purple bruises. His arm was at an awkward angle and he appeared to be having a hard time breathing.

"Oh my god," Kate gasped as she took in the sight of her beaten up partner. Gibbs was already halfway across the room.

"McGee, we need an ambulance," Gibbs said as he knelt down beside Tony.

"On it boss."

"Dinozzo," Gibbs whispered. "Tony." Kate was now on the other side of Tony, using her knife to cut Tony free.

_Oh no. Not again. Maybe if I don't open my eyes they'll leave me alone. _Tony weakly struggled to get away from the men trying to hurt him.

"Tony, can you hear me?" Gibbs asked again. "Dinozzo," Gibbs gruffly said. Bringing up his hand, Gibbs slapped Tony on the back of the head, although lighter than he usually did because he didn't know whether Tony had a concussion.

Slowly, Tony opened one of his eyes, the other one being almost completely swollen shut. "Boss," Tony whispered weakly.

"I'm hear Dinozzo. You're safe now," Gibbs said softly. Kate cut the last of the ropes and with Gibbs help, gently laid Tony on the ground.

"An ambulance is on there way," McGee said. "They should be here in about ten minutes." McGee let out a small gasp as he got a good look at Tony's body.

Gibbs, Kate and McGee tried comforting there hurt partner until the ambulance arrived. They then watched helplessly as there friend was put on a stretcher. "I can only allow one of you to ride with us," one of the paramedics said.

There was no question about who was going to ride in the ambulance with Tony. Tossing his keys to Kate, he said, "Meet us at the hospital. Call Ducky, Abby and Becky and have them meet us there too."

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

A few blocks away, in a dark alley was Jim. He heard a siren in the distance and knew that NCIS had found their hostage. Grabbing his cell phone from his pocket, he dialed John's number and waited for him to pick up.

"What is it Jim?" John asked irritably.

"They found him," Jim said simply.

"What? How the hell could you let them find him?" John asked, his voice increasing in volume.

"Well, what the hell was I supposed to do?" Jim asked. "I wasn't about to risk getting caught just so you're personal vendetta against this man could continue."

Jim could hear the loud sigh that escaped John's lips. "Head back to the house. We'll pick you up there."

"What? Are you kidding? I'm not heading back to the crime scene."

"Okay. Then tell us where you are. We'll pick you up there," John said.

"I'm in the alleyway across the street from that sushi Japanese restraint," Jim said.

"Stay there. We'll be there in about twenty minutes." With that, John Corroner closed his phone, indicating the end of their conversation. _Damn. I guess there's just going to have to be a little change in our plans. I'm still not through with you Dinozzo._


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS or any of the characters.**

**A/N – Sorry it took me so long to update again. I really don't have any excuse for that. I hope you enjoy this chapter and please R&R.**

After McGee had called Abby, Ducky and Becky to tell them they had found Tony, the car became uncomfortably quiet. McGee was lost in his own thoughts. He couldn't get the image of Tony out of his head. He kept picturing Tony, lying on the floor, bleeding from various cuts he had sustained and struggling to breath. He was so lost in thought that the fact that Kate was driving nearly as recklessly as Gibbs drove hardly registered. When Kate swerved sharply to the right to avoid rear ending a car, McGee barely flinched.

Kate was also lost in thought. _Tony has to be okay. _Tears were burning her eyes, threatening to fall. She hadn't realized how much she had begun to care and count on Tony. She counted on him to lighten the mood after a rough case or for him to comfort her when she was feeling down. She vividly remembered the first time she and Tony had met. She had thought of him as the typical frat boy. She had definitely underestimated his abilities and for awhile even wondered why Gibbs kept Tony on as his senior field agent. Over the months that followed, it began to become clear as to why Tony was senior field agent. A lot of times, the way he acted was a façade. His easy going manner made it easier for people to open up to him, whereas with Gibbs, his gruff exterior made people feel intimidated by him. With Gibbs, what you saw was what you got, but Tony was able to change how he acted to suit the person he was talking to. Kate also knew that Gibbs trusted Tony to have his six. She hoped that Gibbs had grown to trust her to have his back, but she knew that Gibbs would never trust her or McGee as much as he trusts Dinozzo. To an outsider, the relationship that Tony and Gibbs have may not appear very affectionate, but Kate knew better. Gibbs wasn't outwardly affectionate to Tony like he was to Abby and Ducky, but there was a bond between the two. She had been working at NCIS for a little under two years and had witnessed the closeness between them.

Minutes later, Kate was pulling into the hospital parking lot. Finding the closest parking space possible, Kate and McGee hurried to the entrance of the building. The first thing they saw was Gibbs. Gibbs face was unreadable, but as Kate drew near, she saw the worry and fear in his eyes.

"How's Tony doing?" Kate asked as soon as she reached her superior.

"They've taken him to get some x-rays. They think there's some internal bleeding and that one of Tony's broken ribs may have punctured a lung. That's why he's having such a hard time breathing," Gibbs said. "Hopefully Ducky arrives soon and he'll have access to more information."

The trio gloomily made there way to the waiting room and waited for several minutes in silence. The silence was broken by a couple pairs of feet hurrying into the room. Looking up, Gibbs saw some very worried faces, particularly from Abby and Becky.

"How's Tony?" Abby asked, worry evident in her face. Gibbs briefed the new arrivals with the little information he had received.

As soon as Gibbs had finished telling them what he knew, Ducky turned his back to the group, saying over his shoulder, "I'll see if I can find out more information regarding Anthony's condition."

"Thanks Ducky," Gibbs replied.

Minutes seemed like hours. Everything was going to damn slow for Gibbs liking. He wasn't used to having no control over things. He was pacing back and forth across the waiting room, a cup of hospital coffee in his hand. Taking another sip of his scalding black coffee, he gave a slight grimace. He hated hospital coffee. He ventured a glance at the rest of the group. McGee was holding a crying Abby in a hug, trying to give her comfort. Becky was situated on a windowsill with a dazed look in her eyes and Kate was just as restless as Gibbs, sitting down for a few seconds then shooting straight up and walking around for a bit.

Minutes later, Ducky returned with more information for the group. "Anthony is currently undergoing surgery. As the doctors suspected, he has received a punctured lung from a broken rib and has some internal bleeding around the kidney area. His right arm is also severely broken. It's broken in three places and they think a rod will be required to help with the healing process. Other than that, many of his other injuries are just bruises that can only be healed with time."

"Yeah, they're just bruises," Gibbs said with a sarcastic undertone. "It's not that big a deal that they're all over his body and will take weeks for them to fully heal but they're just bruises," Gibbs said with such venom that it made everyone flinch. He knew that he was being unreasonable by directing his anger at one of his oldest friends, who he knew cared deeply about Tony and his well being. At that moment, however, he didn't care. He needed to vent his anger, and unfortunately the only people he could get angry at were his colleagues.

"Jethro," Ducky said, for once at a loss for words.

Closing his eyes, Gibbs took a few deep breaths to try and calm himself down. "I'm sorry Ducky. I just need to catch the bastards who did this to Dinozzo."

"I know you do Jethro," Ducky said simply.

"How much longer is Tony going to be in surgery?" Gibbs asked.

"A good couple of hours."

"Okay. We're not doing Tony any good by waiting here. Kate, you're with me. McGee, I want you to go back to NCIS and find Katherine Meldorny and she better be there by the time we get back. Abby, I want you to go back to your lab. We will be sending all the evidence to you and Ducky…"

"Don't worry. I'll stay here and give you updates about young Anthony."

"Thanks Ducky," he said, giving him a wide smile, feeling slightly guilty for the way that he had snapped at him a few moments ago. He then turned his attention to Becky, who was looking very worn down. "Becky, you should go back to Tony's place and get some rest."

"I can't Gibbs. I need to stay here and wait for Tony. I need to see that he's actually alive," she said, tears glistening in her eyes.

Knowing he wouldn't be able to talk Becky into going home, he gave her a small nod, acknowledging that he wouldn't push the issue any more.

Kate and Gibbs rushed out at lightning speed, followed by a slower Abby and McGee. "How does Gibbs expect me to have this lady here by the time he gets back? She's supposed to be vacationing somewhere. For all we know she could be in the Bahamas right now," McGee whispered to Abby.

"Well, you better getting working on it," Abby whispered back. "Because whatever the bossman wants, the bossman gets."

Ducky and Becky settled into the uncomfortable hospital chairs, trying to situate themselves the best they could, knowing they'd be there for awhile. "He's going to be okay, isn't he Ducky," Becky asked.

"He's going to be fine. He's a stubborn young lad and he isn't going to be defeated so easily," Ducky replied, laying a kiss on Becky's forehead.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Arriving back at Katherine Meldorny's place, Gibbs and Kate quickly went to work bagging and tagging everything in the house. Anything and everything was looked over carefully. They needed something, anything that could help them catch Corroner. They worked in silence, neither of them even looking at one another.

"Gibbs," Kate called out from the living room. Abandoning the items in the kitchen, Gibbs quickly made his way to the living room to see what Kate had. Kate was staring at something in a closet. She was deadly still. At first, Gibbs couldn't make out what Kate was looking at, her body blocking the view. He crept up beside her and then swore softly.

The body of an elderly lady was lying in the closet. It looked as if the body had been in the closet for quite some time. Judging by the information they had and the state of the body, he guessed she had been dead for close to a week and a half. Turning away from the closet, Gibbs pulled out his phone.

The phone rang twice before he heard his old friend on the other line.

"Ducky, it's Gibbs. We have a dead body."

"Oh dear. Is it the lady that owns the house?" Ducky asked.

"By the looks of it, I would say yes," Gibbs answered back.

"Okay. I'll be there as soon as I can. Do you want me to have Palmer come down to the hospital?"

"Yeah. He'll do," Gibbs said, snapping his phone shut before Ducky could get another word in.

"It looks like she was beaten to death," Kate said, closely examining the body with a scrunched up nose. The smell was overwhelming.

Gibbs looked around the room, his eyes resting on an object sticking out from behind the sofa. He made his way to the sofa and picked up the object that had caught his eye. "Kate, look," he said, holding up a bat covered in dry blood.

Staring wide eyed at the object Gibbs was holding, Kate softly muttered something under her breath that Gibbs couldn't quite hear. How could anyone hurt an old lady in such a horrible way? Kate wondered.

Gibbs and Kate were almost finished with bagging and tagging evidence by the time Ducky arrived. Kate showed Ducky to the body and he sadly shook his head. Kneeling down on the floor, Ducky quickly got to work examining the body. "Time of death was approximately 11 days ago. It appears the cause of death is from a blunt object. This reminds me of a case that took place in Scotland…"

"Not now Ducky," Gibbs cut him off. "We have the murder weapon. It appears she was beaten to death by a bat."

Gathering the evidence they had found, Gibbs and Kate hurried back to the NCIS building to hand it over to Abby with Ducky close behind them.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"Well, I'm having no luck finding this Meldorny lady," McGee said with a frustrated sigh. He was working on one of Abby's computers in her lab. He could have just as easily worked at his desk in the bullpen, but at this particular time he didn't want to be alone. He needed someone to talk to and keep him company. Since they had found Tony, whenever he had a spare moment to himself, his mind kept going to the basement, with Tony's still body lying on the floor.

"Gibbs isn't going to be too happy to hear that," Abby replied unhelpfully.

Instead of answering, McGee turned his attention back to the computer. "If she did go vacationing, she obviously didn't go very far. She hasn't purchased airplane tickets. Her credit card has remained unused for almost two weeks. Same goes for her ATM and debit card." McGee sighed in frustration.

Before Abby was able to console McGee, Kate and Gibbs came into her lab, bearing evidence.

"Boss, I haven't been able to track down Katherine Meldorny," McGee said, deciding to get the inevitable out of the way.

"We have her," Gibbs replied.

"You do," McGee said, unable to keep the surprise from his voice.

"Yeah. She's on Ducky's autopsy table," Gibbs said without looking up.

"What? Where'd you find her?" Abby asked.

"We found her stuffed in a closet at her house," Kate answered. "We think Corroner or one of his goons beat her to death with this," Kate said, handing Abby a bat with dried blood on it.

Gibbs signaled for Kate and McGee to follow him back up to the bullpen. "What are we going to do now Boss?" McGee asked as they entered the elevator.

"We're going to make some phone calls," Gibbs replied.

For the next few hours, Gibbs, Kate and McGee were busy making phone call, calling all of Meldorny's living relatives and friends, which she had only a few of.

"Okay. Thanks for everything," Kate said, hanging up the phone once again. Turning her attention to Gibbs and McGee, she said. "It appears, as far as I can tell, that the last person to have contact with Meldorny was an old friend by the name of Jade Klitzky. They were childhood friends. She currently lives in Philadelphia and hasn't spoken to Meldorny for close to two weeks. She said that a little over a week ago, she tried calling her home but no one answered. They usually talk to each other weekly and Jade thought it was a little strange that Meldorny never returned her call," Kate finished.

Gibbs sighed in frustration. They were getting no where fast. The silence was broken by Gibbs phone. "Gibbs." After listening for a few seconds, he replied, "Okay Abs, we'll be down there in a minute."

Without saying a word, Gibbs headed down to Abby's lab with Kate and McGee right behind him.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

The music in Abby's lab was deafening. Abby's head was bopping up and down with the beat. "Abby," Gibbs called. When she didn't answer, Gibbs walked over to her stereo and turned it off.

"Gibbs," Abby said indignantly. "I was listening to that."

"What have you got for us Abs?" Gibbs asked, thrusting a Caf Pow into Abby's hands.

"Thanks Gibbs, I needed that," Abby said as she took a big gulp of her drink. "Well, as we suspected, the only three involved in Tony's kidnapping appear to be Corroner, Welts and Elliot. They're DNA was on the beer cans and the cigarettes. As for the bat, it has Meldorny's blood on it, but that's not all." Abby waited for a few seconds for the full effect.

"Well," Gibbs asked impatiently. He wasn't in the mood for games.

"A lot of Tony's blood is on the bat too," Abby said.

'They beat Tony with a bat," McGee asked. He clearly remembered the bruises on Tony's face and was horrified to think that some of them were probably caused by the bat.

Before anyone else could say anything, Ducky walked into the lab. "Jethro," he said very soberly. "Palmer just called to inform me that Anthony's out of surgery."

"Did everything go okay?" Abby asked worriedly.

"I don't know. Palmer said the doctor would explain everything when we got there."

Hurrying out of the lab, Gibbs, Abby, McGee and Kate took one car while the M.D. agreed to follow them.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

They arrived at the hospital in less than fifteen minutes. Ducky, surprisingly, was only a few minutes behind. The group headed to the waiting room and waited, along with Palmer and Becky. A few minutes later, a middle aged doctor walked up to them and asked, "Are you here for Anthony Dinozzo?"

The group waited apprehensively for the doctor to deliver the news, not certain whether it was good or bad news.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters.**

**A/N: Here's another chapter. Sorry it took me so long to get up. I hope you enjoy it. Please R&R.**

Looking around the room, the doctor asked, "Are you family?"

"We're the only family he has," Gibbs snapped.

He looked around at the diverse group once more and then said, "I'm Dr. Enderson. Dinozzo just came out of surgery and is being situated in his room. Currently he is stable. We were able to successfully control and stop the bleeding. His left arm was severely broken in three different places and we had to insert a rod into it to help with recovery. He has two cracked ribs and one broken rib which punctured one of his lungs. The punctured lung proved to be a little more tricky." The doctor looked up at the group of people who were waiting with baited breath for the doctor to deliver the news. "The lung was filling up with air and so we had to place a tube to suction all the air out. He is wearing a face mask that is giving him pure oxygen to help with the recovery of his lung. We will be closely monitoring this for the next twenty four hours with a series of chest x-rays."

Everyone remained quiet for a few moments, reflecting on what the doctor just told them. Everything sounded so serious. "With some rest and the proper care, Dinozzo should make a full recovery," Dr. Enderson said, noting the nervous look on most of their faces.

"Can we see him?" Abby asked.

"Of course. I'll have Nurse Sherwood take you to his room," he said. "Dinozzo is still heavily sedated and it will be hours before he regains consciousness. He should be off the oxygen mask by the time he wakes up and you'll be able to talk to him." A pretty young nurse came up to them and gestured for the group to follow.

Upon entering Tony's room, everyone was shocked at what they saw. Tony lay deathly still, and if it wasn't for the heart monitor, Gibbs would've thought Tony was dead. His face, at least the parts that weren't covered in bruises, was very pale, almost the same shade as his white hospital gown. The bruises were very vivid, probably making him look more pale than he otherwise would've. The thin gown wasn't enough to cover the bruises on his torso. Tony was also hooked up to at least a half dozen machines, performing various functions.

_Damn. _Gibbs looked at the younger agent and couldn't recall a time when he looked so young and vulnerable.

"Poor Tony," Abby said, sitting on the edge of the bed and lightly giving him a kiss on his forehead.

Everyone was gathered around Tony's bed, unsure of what to say or do. Sitting on the edge of Tony's bed, Abby gently brushed the hair from Tony's eyes. Becky was seated in one of the uncomfortable hospital chairs, her hand interlaced with Tony's good hand. Kate occupied the other chair in the room, her hand resting gently on Tony's torso, mindful of his bruises and ribs. Standing at the foot of the bed was McGee, appearing a little uncomfortable, looking as if he wants to offer some comfort but not quite sure how to go about it. Ducky and Palmer were in the corner of the room, taking in the appearance of Tony.

Hating to tear everyone away from Tony, but knowing that they still needed to catch the people who did this, Gibbs cleared his throat and said, "We're not helping Tony by sitting around waiting for him to wake up."

"You're right Jethro. I still have to finish the autopsy on poor Ms. Meldorny," Ducky said as he gestured Palmer to follow him.

"And I still have some evidence to go through," Abby said, reluctantly getting off the bed. Giving Tony one last peck on the forehead, she headed for the door, with Kate and McGee close behind.

After the door closed, Gibbs took a few steps closer to Tony and gently put his hand on Becky's shoulder. "I'll call when he wakes up," Becky said, knowing what Gibbs was thinking. Squeezing Becky's shoulder, he gave a slight nod and headed out the door, leaving Becky and Tony alone.

Gently running her finger up and down Tony's arm, she quietly said, "You never could stay out of trouble. Don't worry. They won't be able to hurt you now Tony," she said, allowing a tear to slide down her cheek. "Your team cares for you and is watching out for you. They're going to catch Corroner."

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Abby, McGee and Kate waited in the hallway for Gibbs. As soon as he exited the room, he turned to McGee and said, "Call security. Have them send someone down to guard Tony's door."

"Do you really think Tony needs security?" Kate asked.

Glaring at Kate, Gibbs said, "I don't know Kate. What do you think? A guy who is hell bent on revenge against Tony is still out there and we have no idea where he is. What do you think? Should we just leave Dinozzo's door unguarded and let Corroner finished what he started?"

Kate opened her mouth to say something but decided against it and shut her mouth once more.

Gibbs stormed through the hospital corridors and to the company owned Sedan with McGee, Kate and Abby following.

"Someone from security is on their way down," McGee informed Gibbs as he climbed into the back of the car.

Gibbs pulled out of the parking lot at top speed, sending Abby, McGee and Kate forward, only to be restrained by their seatbelts.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

The team worked well into the evening, trying to find even the smallest lead. After hours of working, they still had nothing to go from. Abby had carefully gone over the evidence numerous times, unable to find anything they hadn't already known. The last time Gibbs saw her, her head was resting upon Bert and she appeared to be in a deep sleep.

Even though Meldorny's death was a civilian death, Gibbs had fought to keep the body and have his people autopsy it, stating that it was in their jurisdiction, since it involved the kidnapping of one of their agents. Unfortunately, the fight over jurisdiction hadn't been rewarding since Ducky didn't have anything to report to Gibbs that he didn't already know. The poor old lady had been beaten numerous times with a baseball bat, even well after she had passed away. Ducky had since gone home to check up on his mother, the death of Meldorny taking its toll on him. He was accustomed to death. He had to be considering his occupation, but normally his autopsy's consisted of younger males and females. Rarely did he work on old, defenseless ladies.

McGee was still at his desk, hard at work. He and Kate had tried to locate anyone else the three men might have come in contact with in D.C. They even talked to a lot of people employed at NCIS to ask them what they knew about Jim Elliot. None of them had too much information to share, since Jim Elliot mostly kept to himself. They had even gone by the house they had found Tony holed up in, just on the off chance that Corroner and his men would be stupid enough to return to the scene of the crime.

Kate had left the building for the night to go visit Tony for a bit. It was a little past midnight and as Gibbs looked at the paperwork on his desk, he decided that they likely wouldn't find anything to help catch these bastards tonight. Rubbing his eyes, he looked at McGee and said, "McGee, go home."

McGee was staring intently at his computer and didn't hear Gibbs the first time. "McGee," Gibbs snapped.

"What?" McGee asked, suddenly noticing that Gibbs was staring at him.

"It's late. Go home. But I want you here first thing tomorrow morning," Gibbs gently said. Turning his computer off, McGee grabbed his things and headed into the elevator, looking forward to climbing into his bed. He wanted to find Tony's kidnappers as much as anyone, but he was exhausted and knew that he wasn't much help at the moment since he was practically falling asleep at his desk.

Gibbs ran his fingers through his hair, frustrated by the lack of progress they were making. Gulping the last of his coffee, he decided to call it a night. Before heading out, he visited Abby's lab to wake her up and send her home for a couple hours of sleep.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Becky ran her fingers through Tony's hair. Minutes earlier, Dr. Enderson had taken off the face mask, allowing Becky to see Tony's face fully for the first time. Her heart ached to see Tony in such a state. He was pale, hooked up to machines and very still. The Tony Dinozzo she knew was never still. She watched his chest rise and fall. Hearing the door open, Becky turned around to see Kate standing there, holding two coffee cups in her hand.

"Here," Kate said, handing a cup of coffee to Becky.

"Thanks," Becky said, gratefully taking the coffee.

"How's he doing?" Kate asked.

"Not much different than when you last saw him. He woke up for a few seconds but I don't think he knew were he was or anything." As she said this, she didn't take her eyes off Tony.

"How're you doing?" Kate asked, tearing her eyes away from Tony and taking a careful look at Becky. She was a little too pale and clearly exhausted.

"I'm fine," Becky said.

"Maybe you should go back to Tony's place and get some rest," Kate suggested. "I can stay with Tony and keep him company."

"No. I need to at least see him awake. I won't be able to sleep until I talk to him and know that he's going to be okay."

Kate understood how Becky felt. Kate had only known Tony for a little under two years, but she felt exactly the same way. While she was at the NCIS building, she had to constantly refocus her attention on the task at hand, which was to find the bastards that did this to Tony. She had found it increasingly harder to concentrate on finding Corroner, knowing her partner and friend was lying in a hospital bed.

Kate sat down in the uncomfortable hospital chair. They were both silent. The silence was broken by a low moan.

"Tony," Becky said as she abandoned her chair. Kate did the same.

Tony wanted nothing more than to fall back into oblivion, but a couple familiar voices wouldn't allow him to. They were soft and full of worry. Forcing himself to open his eyes, he looked straight into a familiar face. Everything was a little blurry. He blinked a few times, trying to make everything come into focus.

"Becky," he whispered.

She squeezed Tony's hand and broke into a smile. Lifting his head slightly, he saw the pretty face of his partner.

"Welcome back Dinozzo," Kate said with a smile.

Tony coughed a couple of times. Becky immediately poured a glass of water and held the straw up to Tony's dry, cracked lips. He gratefully took a couple of sips.

"Thanks. So, what's the damage?" Tony asked.

"A broken arm, some cracked ribs and a broken rib and a punctured lung," Becky said.

"Not to mention a crap load of bruises," Kate added helpfully.

"A punctured lung," Tony said, frowning slightly. "Sounds serious."

"It was. But as long as you stay in the hospital, you should be fine," Becky said as she swept a few of strands of hair from Tony's face.

"How long will I have to stay?" Tony asked. He hated hospitals, and the thought of being in one for any period of time was unbearable. There was never anything to do and the food was awful. But the hospital had a few perks, namely the fact that he got to interact and flirt with all the pretty nurses.

"As long as the doctor says you need to stay Dinozzo," Gibbs said as he entered the room.

"Hey boss," Tony said, a small smile forming on his lips.

"And I don't want to hear any complaining about it either," Gibbs continued. "I'm not going to sit here and listen to you bitching and moaning."

"Nice to see you to boss," Tony said.

Gibbs turned his attention to Kate and Becky. "Kate, I want you to take Becky back to Tony's apartment and then go home yourself. It's late. I'll stay here with Tony."

It took a little persuasion from Gibbs Kate and Tony to get Becky to leave. Tony kept reassuring Becky that he'd be fine and that he was safe now. Becky finally relented. "I'm coming back first thing in the morning, Tony," Becky said before she was ushered out of the room by Kate.

"Looking forward to seeing you," Tony said as the door slammed shut.

After a few seconds of staring at the door, he turned his attention to Gibbs. "How'd you find me?" Tony asked.

Gibbs explained everything to Tony, including the young man at the bar who helped the men and how Corroner killed his great aunt in order to have a place to keep Tony.

The news greatly disturbed Tony. Because of him, an innocent old lady was killed. "It wasn't your fault Dinozzo," Gibbs said, noticing the guilt etched over his face.

Tony didn't answer. He kept his gaze downward, not wanting to look at Gibbs. The silence stretched for another minute before Tony looked up. "Do you have any leads on where Corroner is?"

"Unfortunately no. Not yet. But we will find him, and we won't let him finish what he started," Gibbs said, giving Tony a reassuring squeeze. The drugs being pumped into Tony's body was making him drowsy. Soon he succumbed to the drugs and was once again asleep.

Stifling a yawn, Gibbs positioned himself as best as he could in the uncomfortable chair, staring at the younger agent. He would do everything in his power to ensure that Corroner wouldn't hurt his agent anymore than he already had been hurt.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Kate and Becky rode in silence all the way to Tony's place. Neither of them spoke, both lost in their own thoughts. Becky was so lost in thought that she didn't make any move to get out when they pulled up to Tony's apartment.

"Becky," Kate said. "Becky," she repeated, a little louder.

"What?" Becky asked, slightly confused.

"We're here," Kate said.

Becky looked around Tony's familiar apartment. All she could say was, "Oh."

Stepping out of the car, Becky bid Kate goodbye. "Thanks for the ride," Becky said. "I'll see you tomorrow morning."

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?" Kate asked.

"I'll be fine Kate," Becky said, stifling a yawn. Even though she would never admit it, she was a little relieved when Gibbs and Tony had convinced her to come home and get some rest. She wanted to stay with Tony, but she was beyond exhausted.

Becky headed into the apartment complex. Kate sat in her car for a few minutes, looking around to make sure everything was okay. There didn't seem to be any immediate danger. After sitting in the car for awhile, Kate finally put it in reverse and backed out into the street.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Becky was still lost in thought as she dug the key to Tony's apartment out of her purse. She opened the door and headed straight for the couch. She decided she would take a shower in the morning. All she wanted to do was sleep. Because of her exhaustion she wasn't very alert. If she had been more alert, she might have heard a man sneaking up behind her.

As Becky unsuccessfully tried to stifle another yawn, she sensed someone was behind her. She turned around and a large, burly man was standing in front of her. She recognized him from the pictures McGee and Kate had dug up. It was John Corroner. Becky was unarmed and the man had more than a hundred pounds on her. In a split second, she decided to do the only thing she could do, which was scream. Before she could do that however, the man had grabbed her and put his hand over her mouth.

"You better listen and do as I say or you could get hurt," Corroner whispered into her ear as he held a knife to her throat. Showing her that he was serious, he pushed the knife into her throat, just slicing it enough to make her bleed.

Becky bit the man's hand, and he let out what sounded like a yelp, a sound Becky didn't expect a man of his size to make. It was weak, almost pathetic. His knife dropped to the floor. Becky scrambled to get away from the man's grip. He was momentarily distracted and had released his tight hold over Becky.

"You bitch," Corroner spat at her as he grabbed her by the hair and yanked her back, causing her to fall on the coffee table. She landed on the table, knocking over a couple of beer cans, some mail and some DVD's onto the floor.

Corroner pulled her up by the hair and turned her around so she was facing him. He was holding her a couple inches off the ground. Putting his large hand around Becky's neck, he began chocking her.. She struggled to get air into her lungs, her feet flailing about in her feeble attempts. Everything was becoming blurry. The last thing she saw before she lost consciousness was the man's hazel colored eyes.

As soon as Becky lost consciousness, the man hoisted her over his shoulder. Before heading out, he pulled his phone out and dialed a number. "I'm on my way out. Make sure the cars parked out front."


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer – I still don't own any of these characters.**

**A/N – These chapters are taking a little longer than I would like to get up. I'll try and get them up faster. I hope you enjoy this chapter. Please R&R.**

A low moan woke Gibbs up from his fitful sleep. Lifting himself from the uncomfortable chair, he stood over Dinozzo, feeling his forehead for any signs of a fever and waiting for the young man to wake up.

"Dinozzo," Gibbs whispered gently.

"Boss," came the weak reply as Tony slowly opened his good eye, the other eye being swollen shut. Tony coughed a couple of times, irritating his injured ribs.

"Here," Gibbs said as he held a straw up to Tony's mouth. Tony took a couple of sips before Gibbs pulled the straw away. "Better," he asked.

"Yes. A lot better. Thanks," Tony said. Looking around the room, Tony noticed the absence of Becky. He had expected her to be here by now.

"Becky's not here yet?" Tony asked.

Glancing at his watch, Gibbs was shocked to realize that he had slept so late. It was already a quarter to ten.

Noting the slight frown that formed on Gibbs face, Tony said, "Even marines like you need there sleep."

"I have a couple of phone calls I need to make Dinozzo. Are you going to be okay?" Gibbs asked.

"I'm injured, not five," Tony replied. "I'll be fine. Do what you need to do. I don't need a babysitter."

"I'll be right back," Gibbs said, heading out the door.

Walking a couple feet away from the security guard so he could have some privacy, he immediately called Becky's phone. His gut was telling him something was not right. Becky would've been here by now if everything was okay. Gibbs knew that there was no way that Becky would've spent more than a couple of hours away from the hospital.

"Damnit," Gibbs muttered as the phone continued to ring without anyone answering. Snapping the phone shut, he growled in frustration, causing a couple of the nurses to look at him curiously. He gave them one of his most menacing glares, causing them to quickly go back to work. Opening his phone once more, Gibbs hit speed dial three.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"Special Agent Todd," Kate said.

"Kate, this is Gibbs. I need you and McGee to head over to Tony's place and check up on Becky."

"Why? What's wrong?" Kate asked, a hint of worry in her voice. This caused McGee to look up from his computer.

"Becky hasn't come to the hospital yet and she's not answering her phone," Gibbs explained.

Quickly grabbing her gear and motioning for McGee to do the same, she said, "Okay. We're heading…" Staring at the phone, Kate said, "I hate when he does that."

As McGee and Kate made there way to the elevators, McGee asked, "What's going on?"

"I don't know. But whatever it is, it's not good," Kate said as she nervously bit her lip.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Returning to Tony's room, Gibbs saw Tony picking at the food tray that had recently been placed in front of him.

"Eat," Gibbs ordered.

"Have you ever actually tried hospital food, Boss?" Tony asked. "I'd rather starve before I put this in my mouth," Tony said, holding up his spoon, which contained something that was green and runny.

"What's that supposed to be?" Gibbs asked, grimacing slightly at the food Dinozzo was refusing to eat.

"Jello," Tony replied. "And this stuff," Tony said, poking the rock hard orange vegetables, "is supposed to be baby carrots." Tony directed his attention to the chunk of meat situated next to the carrots. "This is supposed to be some kind of meat."

Gibbs expression relaxed slightly. "Maybe I'll have Abby sneak you some pizza."

"Really. Thanks Boss," Tony said.

"I'm not doing it for you Dinozzo. I'm doing it so we don't have to listen to you complain," Gibbs responded.

"Well, if you had to eat this stuff, you'd be complaining too," Tony said as he threw his spoon down on the tray.

Switching his attention from his food, Tony asked, "Did you get a hold of Becky?"

"How do you know I was trying to call Becky?" Gibbs asked, trying to stall before having to answer the question. Dinozzo knew him so well. He was one of the few people who could read Gibbs. Most of the time it was a good thing, but every once in a while, he wished that Dinozzo didn't have such a good read on him. He didn't want to tell Tony anything at the moment, because he wasn't quite sure if his gut was right or not. He prayed that it was a false alarm and that Becky was just exhausted and slept in.

"What's wrong boss?" Tony asked. Gibbs had been quiet for too long. Sighing, Gibbs decided the best approach was to tell Tony what he knew at this point.

"I did try and call Becky but she didn't answer," Gibbs said. Tony's face immediately fell.

"You think something's wrong?" Tony asked, holding his breath slightly as he waited for Gibbs to reply.

"I didn't say anything's wrong…" Gibbs started.

"But you're implying that something's wrong."

"Listen Dinozzo," Gibbs said as he saw Tony becoming increasingly panicked. "We don't know what's wrong, if anything is wrong at all. I did call Becky and she didn't answer, but there could be some logical explanation. She was exhausted last night, so maybe she overslept, or maybe she was in the shower when I called her. McGee and Kate are on there way to your apartment to check up on Becky and we should know everything within the next half hour."

Laying his head on his pillow, Tony took a couple of deep breaths, trying to calm his nerves. Looking back up at Gibbs, Tony asked, "What's your gut telling you?"

Relenting, Gibbs said, "my guts telling me something's wrong."

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"Don't you think we're being a little paranoid?" McGee asked as he glanced up at Kate.

"I don't know, but Gibbs gut is saying that something's wrong, and how many times have you known Gibbs gut to be wrong."

Pulling into the parking lot, Kate and McGee hopped out of the car and rushed to the elevator, flashing their badges to the woman at the front desk. Despite the fact that they were in a hurry, McGee took a few seconds to appreciate Tony's apartment complex. Even though McGee had visited Tony's place a handful of times, the fact that it was so upscale always caught him by surprise. There was no way a federal agent could afford a place like this on their salary.

The apartment complex seemed to have everything. It had a state of the art fitness center, a heated outdoor pool and a Jacuzzi and pool on the rooftop, a few rooms to conduct business and a couple of party rooms that had a kitchen and a media system. The place was also very sophisticated. Various forms of art and statues surrounded both the inside and outside of the building. Outside, there was a large Shakespearean Garden. Neither Kate nor McGee ever questioned Tony on how he could afford such a place.

They took the elevator up to the fourth floor and made there way to Tony's apartment.

Knocking on the door three times, Kate held her breath, waiting for a reply. There wasn't an answer. Turning the doorknob, Kate was surprised to find the door unlocked. Kate motioned for McGee to cover her.

"NCIS!" Kate hollered as she made her way into the room. There was complete silence. Making there way around the apartment, they looked in the adjoining bedroom and bathroom for any signs of Becky or intruders. Everything was quiet.

Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary until their eyes rested on the coffee table. The coffee table was somewhat askew. On the floor surrounding the table, there was some mail, beer cans and DVD cases lying on the ground.

"Kate," McGee said as he bended down to pick something up from under the coffee table. McGee held up the item for Kate to see, causing her to gasp slightly as she put her hand over her mouth. It was a knife. The tip was covered in dry blood. Looking down at the carpet, Kate was relieved when she saw only a couple of droplets of blood, nowhere near enough for a person to have been killed here. McGee bagged the item so it would be ready for Abby to look at when they returned to NCIS.

"McGee, this place has a security system installed in the building. Get the video footage from yesterday morning up until now. I'll call Gibbs and then begin questioning some of the residents of the apartment."

Looking at McGee's back as he headed out the door, Kate sighed and mentally prepared herself to deliver the news. Finally gathering her nerves, she hit speed dial number one and waited until she heard the gruff voice of her boss.

"Gibbs."

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"What?" Gibbs asked as he tried hard to control his anger. Tony looked up from the food that he was still playing with. "Son of a bitch."

_This isn't good_ Tony thought to himself as his chest tightened. He knew whatever the person on the other line had to say, he wasn't going to like.

"Okay. What have you got so far?" Pause. "Good. Send it down to Abby." Pause. "I'll send Ducky down to the hospital and meet you there." Tony was finding it very frustrating listening to the one sided conversation.

Snapping his phone shut, Gibbs turned his attention to Tony, who was now looking at him very intently. "Who was that? What's wrong?" Tony asked.

"That was Kate," Gibbs said. "They were just at your place." Gibbs took a deep breath, a little unsure of how to continue. After a few seconds, he decided that Tony needed to know everything. "Becky's missing."

"What?"

"Kate said that Becky wasn't at your apartment when they went to check. They also found a bloody knife under your coffee table, which is being sent to Abby." At the words '_bloody knife'_ Tony's eyes widened and Tony became very pale.

"There wasn't enough blood to kill anyone," Gibbs quickly said, noticing the worry in Tony's face. "I'll call Ducky and have him come down here," Gibbs said. After a few seconds, Gibbs squeezed Tony's shoulders reassuringly and said, "We'll find Becky and the bastards that have her."

Tony merely nodded, lost in his own thoughts. He didn't notice Gibbs leaving the room. Outside the room, Gibbs flipped open his phone to call Ducky.

"Jethro," Gibbs heard over the other line of the phone. "How's young Anthony doing? I was just about to head over to check on him."

Without answering Ducky's question, Gibbs bluntly said, "Corroner has kidnapped Becky."

"Oh dear," Ducky said.

"I need you to come here and watch over Tony. I'm heading to Tony's apartment to help Kate and McGee question the residents and staff."

"I'll be down there as soon as I can," Ducky said.

"Thanks Ducky." With that, Gibbs snapped his phone shut and headed out of the hospital.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Located in another part of Washington, in a warehouse ridden neighborhood, Corroner, Welts and Elliot were planning their next move. They had to drastically change their plans. Corroner was frustrated at how things were progressing. This wasn't how things were supposed to go. He knew it was going to be a pain in the ass to get Dinozzo back, especially since Dinozzo probably has a guard stationed outside his room. They also had changed the license plates on the van, knowing that a BOLO could've been put out on it.

They watched Becky struggle in the chair they had tied her up to. Bruising was evident on her face. The bitch wouldn't listen or cooperate. Corroner and his men had to get a little rougher than they intended too. Walking over to Becky, Corroner bent down and whispered, "I'm sorry I had to do this. Don't worry. Your knight in shining armor will soon be joining us." Lightly tapping her on the cheek, he joined his two accomplices and were began planning how they were going to get Dinozzo out of the hospital.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N - Sorry this took me so long to post. **

**Disclaimer – I still don't own any of these characters.**

As Kate approached the front desk in the lobby, she dug out her NCIS badge. Sensing someone behind her, the young woman abandoned her search for a file and turned around to face the federal agent. "May I help you," she asked.

"I'm special agent Todd, NCIS. Do you recognize any of these men, Ms. Scott?" Kate asked, reading the nametag pinned to the woman's shirt. She held out three pictures of Corroner, Elliot and Welts.

Examining the pictures closely, the woman replied, "I'm sorry. No, I don't. Should I?"

"These three men were in the building sometime last night," Kate replied.

"I wasn't working the desk last night. My shift started at seven this morning," Scott said. "Jerry Delver was working the eleven o'clock to seven o'clock shift."

"I need his address and phone number," Kate said.

"Oh, certainly," Scott said. "Is he in trouble, because he really is a good kid just sometimes makes bad decisions."

"We just need to ask him a few questions," Kate said, not committing one way or the other.

After a few seconds of searching through the computer, she came up with his phone number and address. She recited them to Kate and then asked, "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"No. Thanks for your help," Kate said as she finished writing down the address on her notepad. As she turned around, she saw Gibbs storming into the lobby.

"Gibbs..."

She was cut off by Gibbs, who gruffly asked, "What have you got Kate?"

"Well, the only evidence that McGee and I found in Tony's apartment was the knife. I sent McGee to get the security tapes and I just spoke to the woman at the front desk. She wasn't here last night but gave me the phone number and address for a man by the name of Jerry Delver, who was working here last night."

Gibbs nodded his approval. Just then, McGee came out of the elevator, tapes in hand. "Boss," McGee said, somewhat surprised that Gibbs had already arrived, but considering the way that Gibbs drove, McGee thought, it really shouldn't be much of a surprise.

"What have you got for me McGee?" Gibbs asked.

"Well, I talked to the security guard that was monitoring the cameras and he said that the security cameras are watched around the clock. He doesn't know how any of the men could've snuck past him. The only time he wasn't watching the video footage last night was when one of the residents called, saying they thought a burglar was trying to get into her apartment. She was an elderly lady and even though…"

"McGee, what does this have to do with finding Becky?" Gibbs asked, referring to the old lady.

"Oh. Anyways," McGee continued, blushing slightly at the mild reprimand. "The security guard, Matt, had to go down to check it out. It turned out to be a false alarm. He thinks that's the only time they could've snuck past him, which, he said, was a very unlucky situation. Matt went down to check on the lady at about twelve thirty."

"Good," Gibbs said. "McGee, I want you to go back to NCIS and give Abby the evidence. I want you and Abby to go over the tapes to see if you can find anything significant. Kate, you're with me. We're going to talk to this Delver guy."

"Do you think he'll be able to give us any useful information?" Kate asked.

"I don't know, but it's worth a shot."

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Tony was beyond frustrated. He hated being stuck in a hospital bed while his best friend was missing.

Tony heard the squeak of the door and saw Ducky strolling in. "Anthony, how are you feeling?" Ducky asked.

"I'm fine. Just a little sore," Tony replied.

Ducky placed his hand on Tony's forehead, feeling for any signs of a fever. Checking over Tony's charts and heart monitor, Ducky appeared satisfied and sat down in the uncomfortable chair.

Ducky began rambling on about his mother's new caretaker and how she's been such a help to Ducky and Mrs. Mallard. Tony was only partially listening to Ducky's stories. During his time at NCIS, he had mastered tuning out Ducky. He knew Ducky meant well, but if you let him, he could go on for a good thirty minutes or more with one story. _At least Palmer enjoys his stories_ Tony thought, a small smile playing on his lips.

Releasing a small sigh that went unheard by Ducky, Tony began thinking about his situation. Tony couldn't help feeling extremely guilty. It was because of him that Becky was even in this mess. He trusted Gibbs and his team to find Becky, but it was hard for Tony to just sit in a hospital bed and do nothing.

Minutes later, Dr. Enderson walked through the door. "How are you doing Tony?" he asked.

"I'm fine."

"I need to give you a chest x-ray for your lungs," Dr. Enderson said as he looked over Tony's charts.

Tony, with the help of Dr. Enderson and Ducky, got unhooked from the machines that were attached to him and climbed into the wheelchair that was placed by his bed.

"I'll be here when you get back," Ducky said as Dr. Enderson wheeled Tony out of the room. Once they were out of sight, Ducky once again settled himself into one of the hospital chairs.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"What's the verdict?" Tony asked.

Looking at the x-rays for a few more seconds, Dr. Enderson turned around to face Tony and said, "Your lung appears to be healing well. We'll need to continue monitoring them for a couple more days to make sure there aren't any more complications, but I think you should make a full recovery without any lasting side effects."

"That's good," Tony said.

"Very good," the doctor agreed.

Enderson began wheeling Tony down to their room. As Enderson wheeled Tony back to his room, a nurse in scrubs rushed yelled across the hallway to Dr. Enderson. "Dr. Enderson, we need you in room 119. Mrs. Schelts just went into cardiac arrest."

At that moment, a male nurse approached Dr. Enderson and said, "I can take him back to his room."

"Thanks," Dr. Enderson said, already heading down the hallway. "Room 102," he called out over his shoulder.

Tony hadn't really been paying attention to anything that was happening. He was caught up in his own problems. It wasn't until Tony noticed that they were heading in the opposite direction of his room that Tony looked up. He gasped when he saw who was wheeling his chair. It was one of Corroner's men, Jim Elliot.

Jim couldn't believe how perfectly this was working out. It was nothing but pure luck with how everything worked. He had been planning on sneaking into Tony's room under the guise of a nurse. He had easily been able to don some scrubs and appear as nothing more than a nurse. Unfortunately, when he approached Tony's room, he saw a elderly man sitting in one of the chairs. Tony wasn't in the hospital bed. He was about to leave the hospital, cursing under his breath, when he saw Tony being wheeled down the hall by one of the doctors. _This was indeed working out perfectly._

Before Tony could say anything, Jim bent down and whispered in his ear, "you better do as I say and not make a scene. We have Becky and if you want to see her alive you'll do as I say."

Tony instantly froze and any thoughts doing anything to prevent from being kidnapped again went out the window. "Where are we going?" Tony asked, trying to mask the fear that he felt.

"You'll find out soon enough," Jim replied as he wheeled Tony out of the building. Tony was wheeled out to the parking lot and was ordered to climb into the back of the van. Not climbing in fast enough for Jim's liking, he gave Tony a shove, causing him to fall face first into the van and bringing pain to his already injured ribs. Tony heard Jim enter the van behind him and slam the door closed. Larry Welts was in the driver's seat and as soon as the door was slammed shut he drove off.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"Well, that was a waste of time," Gibbs grumbled. They had just returned to the NCIS building after visiting Jerry Delver. He wasn't able to give them any useful information regarding Becky's kidnapping.

Gibbs pushed the elevator button that would take them down to Abby's lab. Once they reached Abby's lab Gibbs tersely asked, "What have you got for me Abs?"

Turning around, Abby looked at Gibbs and said, "What, no Caf-Pow."

"Can I give you an IOU," Gibbs asked tiredly, running his fingers through his hair.

"Sure thing," Abby chirped.

"Well, the video footage was kind of useless. We didn't get any useful information from that."

"And the knife?" Gibbs asked, knowing that Abby had something to go off of.

"The blood was Becky's," Abby said. "There were also traces of quite a few different chemicals," Abby started, scrunching her face up. "Such as tertiary butyl hydro quinine, valero nitrile and cuprous cyanide."

"How did all those chemicals get on the knife?" Kate asked.

Abby shrugged and said, "Well, wherever they are, there could be traces of these chemicals in the air that managed to get on the knife."

"Where would those type of chemicals be held?" Kate asked.

"In a lab," McGee said. Looking at Gibbs, he then quickly said, "But of course they couldn't be hiding out in a lab. Maybe a warehouse. Like an abandoned chemical warehouse or something."

"OK. That's something to go off of. Abby. McGee. I want you two to work on locating deserted warehouses that could house such chemicals."

"On it boss," McGee said, already furiously typing on one of Abby's computers. Abby turned around and started doing the same thing.

Gibbs walked out of the lab with Kate on his heels.

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Sitting in Tony's hospital room was Ducky, waiting for Tony to get back. He was reading today's paper and glancing at his watch every once in awhile. He thought that Tony would've been back by now. _Unless there was a complication_ Ducky thought nervously. Ducky pushed that thought out of his head. _Tony's alright. Gibbs wouldn't have it any other way._

_I need some coffee._ With that thought, Ducky left the room in search of some decent coffee. As he was heading down the hall, he saw Dr. Enderson. Tony wasn't with him.

"Dr. Enderson," Ducky called out as he approached the man.

"Dr. Mallard. Is there something wrong with Tony?" Dr. Enderson asked.

Now Ducky was really confused. "I thought Tony was still with you," Ducky said.

"No. A patient of mine went into cardiac arrest and I had another nurse take him back to Ducky's room.

_Oh no. Gibbs is going to be pissed about losing Anthony again._

"I'll call security," Dr. Enderson said.

Ducky didn't respond. He needed to call Gibbs. He wandered off and hit the speed dial number 2. The phone rang twice before there was an answer on the other line.

"Gibbs."


End file.
